The Incident
by Gothic-Romantic99
Summary: Fourth in the Santa Carla Chronicles. The boys encounter a team of slayers that their combined strength cannot defeat. David seeks Max's assistance, requiring Max to admit to Lucy his relation to David. Told through four perspectives. Rewritten.
1. Lucy

Disclaimer: I do not own The Lost Boys.

Author's Note: Hello, all. After rereading the first two chapters I was appalled at how awful they truly were. Being the perfectionist that I am, I decided it was high time for a rewrite.

Each chapter is based on a different character's perspective. This one is Lucy's POV.

This is the fourth part of my Santa Carla Chronicles series. There are references to the first three stories: _The Only Way_, _Curtis_, and _Runaway_, but this can stand on its own, so it's not necessary to read those stories first, but you might feel better informed if you do.

* * *

Quite frankly, I like the night shift. Granted it is slow compared to the daytime, sometimes bordering on boring, but there's hardly any trouble. Most people prefer to wander about the boardwalk and shop for videotapes during the day. I like this job. The pay isn't all that great, minimum wage, but it helps pay the bills. Dad refuses to take payment from me, but I will still write him a check every month.

A video store, it's not a difficult job. More importantly, it's a job.

That's why I took it, I needed employment. Being a single mom in this economy does not come cheap. This is not the way I hoped I'd live, but we just have to move forward. That's something I want to teach my children: no matter how bad things look, never give up.

Everything I do is for my children. My boss is very kind and understanding when it comes to my kids. He even allows me to have the mornings off, so I can spend that time with my boys. Even though they say they don't, they do need me. Poor Michael, he's trying his hardest to keep things moving while I'm away. He's got his moments, and he's had a bit of an attitude since we moved here, but I know he's a good boy. He even took on a less than glamorous job to help with the bills. *

This new lifestyle is a big adjustment for all of us. I only hope my boys are coping well with this new arrangement. My kids won't talk to me and when they do it's a chore on its own. Michael has been extra snappy and distant lately. Dad told me that it's part of being a teenage boy. Maybe he thinks girls find that attitude attractive. I've told him otherwise time and again, but he doesn't believe an old woman. Dad assured me that in time he will come to his senses. Max told me something similar. They were both teenage boys at one time, and Max mentioned he has sons of his own, so perhaps I should just remain patient and let him get through this on his own. All those articles in the parenting magazines tell me that pushing is just going to distant him further. I should trust the professionals.

Sam is a different story. He's been making up these ridiculous stories about monsters and vampires. He's too old to be thinking that way, although Max assured me it was just the stress of the move and perhaps he's doing it to get attention. Max had taken a few child psychology classes when he went to college (in addition to raising four boys on his own), so I trust his words. I tried spending more time with Sam, organizing a few mother-son activities, and when we do everything's fine. It's so weird to see him acting this way. Sam has always been mature for his age, but to see him regressing to these childhood fantasies is a bit much. Maybe I should listen to Max's advice and take him to a counselor. I don't think Sam will go for that. Still, I feel that he's hiding something, especially about Michael. He changes the subject every time his brother is mentioned in conversation. I don't want to push him into talking about something he's not ready to. I only hope it's not anything serious.

I just wish my boys would open up to me like they used to. Not that I blame them, they didn't have much say in the situation.

Their father didn't want them and I would never let him have them. He got the house, the property, mostly everything, but I would not let him have the boys. I'd fight to my death to keep them. They may not be that happy here with me and little money, but I'd rather make them live poor than let that man keep them.

He's a horrible father, one of the reasons I divorced him. He never wanted to be there in their lives. In the last five years only time he ever paid any attention to them were during one of our many fights and he used the boys to get back at me. It's been a month since we moved down here and not once has he called to see how they're getting along. Still the emotional neglect was not the reason I chose to leave.

Michael hates him; he's hated him for years. That's probably the reason he doesn't want to meet Max. He's very protective, that's one of many things I love about him. He doesn't want another man to hurt me and Sam the way his father did.

I had my suspicions, with him "working" late every night, the scent of perfume that wasn't mine, coming home wearing a different tie than the one I saw him leave in that morning. He kissed me on the cheek then went on up to bed. I had to hide my tears from the boys. I was too much a coward to confront him about it. I wanted to keep my family together and ignored it. I went to bed with pain in my heart many nights. I never expressed these feelings to Michael or Sam. I didn't want to burden them with my agony. A mother is supposed to ease pain not cause more.

A part of me knew Michael already knew. If he did he pretended ignorance the same as I. Still, I remember that night too clearly. It's engraved in my memory how Sam and I had to hold Michael back from striking his father.

We went out that night to celebrate, just me and the boys. We went to one of the later showings at the cinema. I promised Sam if he got straight A's we would go to dinner at his favorite restaurant then see a movie of his choosing. The motivation worked and it was Sam's second straight A report card. Their father said he had to work late and wouldn't be able to join us. Michael seemed relieved when he heard the news.

We were a little late leaving the theater. It was a Saturday so I wasn't too worried about the boys getting into bed so late. Michael was driving home. Despite the rocky beginnings to driving, he has learned well and is a better driver than most kids his age.

Because of a detour involving a flooded bridge we passed a part of town I didn't like traveling. I was a nervous wreck knowing how many car accidents happened at night downtown. I glanced out the passenger side window to watch people stumble out of a bar. I tried not laughing at their behavior as I could remember a time when I was young and acted in a similar way. Nothing could prepare me for what I saw next. My husband stepped out of a bar in the arms of another woman, a woman way younger than me, possibly twenty, not ten years older than his son. My heart stopped. I felt the tears trying to force themselves down my face, but I had to fight to keep them back. My husband played with the straps of that woman's pink tank top which revealed most of everything she had. She kissed him on the cheek. I closed my eyes and told myself it was only a dream.

I wasn't going to do or say anything at the moment because the boys were in the car. Unfortunately I let out a sob. Both my sons looked up. Sam was about to question when I saw the red in Michael's eyes and realized he saw him too. He jerked the car into the nearest parking lot and flew out of the vehicle before I could say a word. Afraid of what my son would do, I hopped out of the car and ran after him.

Sam followed after me confused to what was happening. Sam's cries reached his father's ears. He looked over and I saw a moment of remorse in his eyes. The blonde bimbo squeezed her tiny hand around my husband's. Michael was fuming. Sam finally understood what was going on and became angry too, but not bold enough to rise against his dad. Michael made it clear he was not going to let this go.

That bimbo scurried off, not wanting to get in the middle of the family squabble.

There were only silent stares for about a minute which seemed like hours.

"Michael, get back in that car and go home right now," he said in a threatening tone.

Michael's eyes narrowed. "How long have you been doing this?" my eldest son asked. I could tell from the look in his eyes that he too had suspected his father's actions but chose to keep quiet.

The man I considered my husband clenched his fist. "Michael, this is none of your business. You go home now!"

"How could you do this?" Sam cried, having had enough of being ignored. "She's your wife and our mother." I put my hand on Sam's shoulder and pulled him back. I gave him a pleading look that asked him to not get himself involved. Sam yanked himself away. He glared at his father. "Why did you do this, Dad? Why?" Sam started weeping.

"I don't have to explain anything to my kid!" he yelled and raised his hand and aimed the back of it for Sam's face.

That's when I spoke up. "You do have to tell him," I said. I pulled Sam out of that man's striking range. "You chose to bring this into our family, so he's going to have some questions." I then added, "And you will not hit my son."

"We'll deal with this later," he bellowed. I saw the nosy crowd surrounding and nodded in agreement.

"We'll deal with this now," Michael threatened.

"Michael, let's go home," I said pulling him by the arm.

"Don't cross me, boy," he said.

That's when Michael lost it. He ran for his father, screaming profanity and yelling that he didn't deserve someone as good as me for a wife. He clenched his fist and pulled his arm back, aiming for his father's face.

Sam grabbed Michael's torso and I caught his arms. Michael struggled in our grasp. Finally he cooled down enough and stopped trying to fight us. He still glared at him.

"I want you out of my house tonight," he said to Michael.

"Stop it!" I cried. I pushed Michael behind me. With tears in my eyes I gave him a look that begged him to back off for mine and Sam's sake. The sorrow switched to anger when I turned to stare into my husband's eyes. "Don't threaten me when you're the one in the wrong here."

"Don't question me, woman," he growled raising his hand at me.

"You're drunk," I argued. "Please, let's all go home and we'll talk this over in the morning."

"Is there a problem here?" a police officer asked approaching us. Someone must have watched the scene and called for help. Not wanting anyone to go to jail, I told him everything was alright. "Get him home," the cop said to me pointing to my husband.

The ride home was silent. I took over driving, with my husband in the front seat beside me and Sam behind him. We had to keep Michael out of striking distance. Sam told me before he went to bed that the whole ride home Michael kept his eyes on his father.

I did not go to bed with him that night. I did not want to be in the same room as that man. I stayed downstairs in the living room crying. I cried for almost two hours before I fell asleep on the sofa. The next morning I apologized to Sam and Michael for having to witness that.

Michael slammed his fist on the table. "I'm sorry, Mom," he said.

I hugged him.

"I'm sorry I scared you," he added. "Not sorry that I wanted to hit him. I still want to—"

"Hush," I told him as I began to weep again.

"He tried to hit Sam," Michael argued.

"He was drunk, he wasn't thinking clear—"

Michael punched the empty orange juice pitcher off the table and let out a frustrated growl. "No, that's no excuse. Too many years I had to put up with that crap. I'm not going to let him do it to Sam too."

My throat became dry. "Michael," I said softly. "What are you talking about?"

That was when Michael finally confided in me about the bruises. For years I noticed the black and blue coloring along my son's arms, but he assured me they happened when he fell off his bicycle or from playing basketball. Michael's eyes were so full of pain when he tearfully revealed how many times his father backhanded him. I gasped and cried the instant Michael revealed the reason for his black eye that Summer I had gone to visit my mother in the hospital wasn't the result of falling down the stairs.

It didn't take long for us to file a divorce. I left that night. I packed up a few essentials and took my boys out of that house. They were never going to step foot in a room with him again so long as I live. The house and all my memories were tarnished. I agreed to all his and his horrid lawyer's demands if only I would be allowed to have full custody of the boys. I confronted him about what Michael told me to which he answered that the brat needed discipline. It took all my strength not to bash his jaw in. I wanted that monster behind bars immediately, but without solid proof it would be hard case to win, especially with his crooked lawyer by his side. I took a deep breath and offered not to file child abuse charges if he promised to never come within one hundred feet of my sons for the rest of his life. He must've realized just how much those charges would ruin his reputation if the news ever got out. I made sure to get that vow in writing. He agreed to my terms and it was settled. The next thing I knew we were packed up and moving back home to my dad's house in Santa Carla.

The boys make sure to remind me over and over again everyday how much they hate living here. We won't be here for long. As soon as I get enough money to afford a nice place elsewhere, we will move. I'm not too fond of living in the "murder capital of the world." But as of now we have to make do with what we have. We're lucky to even have somewhere to live.

We're doing alright for now. I believe Michael has met some new friends he hangs out with every night. Sam mentioned something about Michael abandoning him for a girl, so I take it he's getting along well. Sam told me he met two boys his age that he hangs out with regularly. So maybe there's hope we'll adapt. Plus, I've met someone special.

Michael told me this morning that he does not approve of me seeing Max. I understand Michael's point of view, but his behavior towards Max is very unacceptable. I understand this is happening very quickly. I've discussed this with Max and he totally agrees. We're going to take this new relationship slow, he's keen on gaining their trust. That's something I love about Max, he's not pushy. Besides, he said he has sons of his own, so he understands how kids will react to this whole thing. I've never met his boys, but I hope they'll get along with mine.

If anything, Michael should be grateful towards Max for giving me this job. He is a very understanding man. He understood how much I needed this job and gave it to me because he liked my personality.

As of now our relationship status is purely plutonic, but if it possibly blossoms into something more I won't be disappointed. I can't help but think Max feels the same way. Just last night as we were closing the store Max told me he was looking for a nice woman to marry. He wants someone who is warm and loving who will also be a good mother to his children. I think he was hinting at me, but I didn't want to respond right away. I really do like him.

After he told me that last night and I couldn't stop thinking about him. He said he wants to take me out to dinner again after we close the store. I couldn't help but count the minutes while the clock tortured me with its ticking.

There I was standing there alone behind the counter, keeping a lookout for the rare customer. Diana, the teenage girl who works here, was out on a cigarette break. I've come to know her well in this short amount of time. Last week she told me about her boyfriend troubles. I explained to her that his cocky and irresponsible behavior was typical of teenage boys. Then two nights ago she came to work sobbing. I comforted her while Max looked on with a soft smile. Diana wept while she told me that her boyfriend suddenly ran away the night before without leaving a note, or telling anyone. She explained how the police came to her house to see if she had any information on his whereabouts. Diana wiped away her tears then said what I had feared, what if his name had been added to the list of numerous murders in this city.

Over the week she seemed to have calmed down a bit. She still showed a bit of sadness on her face. The roughly sketched photo of her boyfriend rested on a sheet of lime green paper on the bulletin board outside the store. I hope to never see my sons' faces posted along the flyers of missing persons.

I tried to keep those thoughts from my mind while at work. I had to keep up a cheery appearance at least for the customers. Since I had come in to work we have had a total of three customers in which only one had bought anything.

I stood behind the table reading a book when this young man rushed into the building. I smiled as I got ready to offer help, but quickly became shocked by how anxious he looked. His eyes were wide and he was breathing heavy. I helped him calm down to where he could speak. He looked into my eyes and that's when I realized this was one of the kids Max kicked out of here the night I got the job. Only last time he wore this cocky smile on his face.

Max made it clear he did not want these boys in his store, but I couldn't just kick him out, not when he was in this state.

"Is Max here?" he asked. "I need to talk to him now."

"Are you okay?" I asked him. "Do you need anything?"

"Yes!" he shouted. "I need to talk to Max! Did you not just hear me, you insignificant disgrace of humanity?"

"David!" Max yelled as he entered the front.

The boy straightened his posture and stared at Max. I was afraid the young man was going to hurt Max for what happened two weeks ago, but Max didn't look scared as he approached the teen. He appeared angry.

He turned to me and said, "I'm sorry, Lucy." Max turned back to the blonde and glared at him as he said, "I've taught you better manners than that. Now apologize."

The boy muttered an obvious false apology to me, but didn't wait for me to accept it before turning back to Max.

"I've told you about coming in here," said Max.

"But this is important!" the boy interrupted.

Max looked at me, then at the youth, then back at me.

"Excuse me, Lucy," he said as he pulled the teenage boy aside.

I tried not to pry into their whispers. How Max knew this boy was none of my concern. I looked over to see that something the young man said worried Max. The boy positioned his fingers as if he were pinching something while he talked. Max's face showed more worry with every passing second. They exchanged a few more words before I saw Max raise his arm and slap the boy across the face.

"So you came here?" Max yelled.

The teen nodded as he held his face where Max hit him.

Diana gasped in shock at Max's outburst as she stared at the two.

"What's going on?" Diana asked.

"I really don't know," I said and closed my book.

Diana and I both looked over at them to Max hand the boy a key off the key ring. Max said one more thing then the young man rushed over to the door.

"David!" Max called. The boy I assumed to be David turned around. Max's face held a serious expression. "Don't make any noise. And do not touch anything when you get there."

David nodded and hurried out of the store.

Max came over to me and put his hand on my shoulder.

"Who is he?" I asked knowing I shouldn't have. I don't even know why I asked.

"I guess now's a good time as any," he said as if he wanted to avoid ever telling me what he was about to. I felt a little anxious about what he was about to say. "That's David. He's my son."

"Son?" I asked. I was confused. By their first interaction I didn't think he cared much for him. It took me by surprise. Suddenly I was not so interested in Max. I just got out of a relationship with an abusive man and did not need another one.

"Yes. Adopted son, but son nonetheless." Max said, sounding a little ashamed. "Don't let this come between us. I promise he'll be better behaved next time."

"It's not that," I said with a laugh. "When you said you had kids, I was thinking small children."

"Oh," Max said laughing. "I should've been more specific. Anyway, he's rather fond of your son, Michael."

"He knows Michael?" I asked, not realizing at the time it was a stupid question.

"Yeah, all my boys told me they liked hanging around Michael. No doubt they've already played a few pranks on him. I'm sorry if they did anything to scare him, they only have good intentions."

"I'm just glad he's making friends," I said. "I was afraid he would have such a hard time adapting to life here. It's so different for them."

Max stroked my hair.

"So is everything okay with—?" I began not knowing what to say, I just had to do something to get him to stop touching my hair. My ex-husband used to do that and I didn't want to have that memory, not now. Not while I'm with Max. The fear in my heart increased. I cleared my throat then asked, "Do you normally discipline him that harsh?"

Max looked taken back. He smiled then shook his head. "No, very rarely. Only when he does something that foolish, which is not often. They could've lost their lives tonight for their foolishness and almost worsened it by acting out in panic." He turned to face the door. "If anything I'm too lenient with those boys." He turned to me and offered a kind smile, one that made me melt. "Don't worry, I've taken care of their mistake, they'll be fine."

I nodded. I'm so glad Michael is staying in tonight. I'm not sure if I really want him hanging with that crowd. But if they're Max's kids then I shouldn't be worried. I don't approve of him using physical force like that, but the boy didn't seem hurt by it. Besides I could tell that Max was genuinely concerned with his son's well-being.

"So have you decided?" he asked. "You still want to go out to dinner?"

I nodded in agreement. "That would be lovely."

The moment was ruined when two men in ripped jeans and leather jackets burst into the store. They must have been drunk because they muttered something about a vampire. Now I see why Sam keeps getting these silly ideas about vampires. I don't want him out on the boardwalk at night if these are the kind of things the people of this town will put in his head. He's been having trouble sleeping so much already.

"Lucy, can you and Diana take those two blue crates of tapes to the back and store them in the closet," Max said not taking his eyes of those two. "I'll take care of our last two of tonight."

I nodded as Diana and I each grabbed a crate. They weren't that heavy and I'm not exactly sure why Max wanted _only _these two crates out of the twelve on the floor to go to the back. Still, neither of us asked as we simply carried out our last task.

Max headed over to the two men who began yelling about vampires in the building.

Diana tilted her head towards me and said, "There's a reason you shouldn't take drugs."

I laughed as I held the door open for myself and her. We found the closet Max was speaking of. When I opened the door I noticed there really wasn't much in there. There were a few boxes and some empty crates. Diana looked at me and asked with her eyes if this was where they were supposed to go. I wasn't entirely sure, but Max said to put them in the closet and this is the only closet back here, so it has to be the one he was referring to. If he meant his office he would have clearly stated the office closet. Diana and I put the crates inside then walked back to the front to find Max turning out the lights.

"Where'd they go?" Diana asked.

"Oh, turns out they were supposed to meet their friends at some bar," Max replied. "As if they need any more to drink."

"Well, good night," Diana said as she grabbed her coat.

Max and I said our farewells as she left.

"What do you feel like tonight?" Max asked as he handed me my purse.

"Surprise me," I said. I wasn't really hungry when I came to work, but I really wanted to spend more time with Max.

"How about we walk until you find something you like, then we'll eat," he said.

I nodded in comply. He put his arm around my waist as we left the store. He locked up the building then we continued on our stroll down the boardwalk. I couldn't hide my smile. I just felt so safe when in his arms. Now I'm starting to believe what my dad said, when he told me it was only a matter of time before I found someone better. Things were suddenly starting to look up for the first time in years.

* * *

* This is a reference to one of the deleted scenes in the movie where Michael has a job as a trashman.

I know that the timeline of the movie is only about a week or so, but I decided, for this story, to extend the Emmerson's stay in Santa Carla at a month at this point. I know it was a fad with '80s movies, but I find it kind of hard for people to fall in love within a 72 hour time period.

Hope you enjoyed!


	2. Max

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Author's Note: Again, this is the exact same plotline as the last story, it is only in a Max's point of view. The next chapter will be in David's POV. I haven't decided yet, but I may even put up a fourth chapter in Marco or Paul's POV.

There are references and spoilers to my stories _The Only Way, Curtis_, and _Runaway_ in this chapter. It's not essential to this story to read those first, but just in case you're curious.

Thanks to Nightcrawlerlover, Ghostwriter, and WhiteChocolateRaspberries for the reviews.

* * *

It is Tuesday, only second to Wednesday when it comes to the pace of my business. We may have had five customers total, even less purchased anything. However this store is only a disguise and while I would prefer keeping the business at a regular flow, it's not that important.

It must be odd to hear a store owner say those words, but the ones who buy from me belong to the same species that I prey upon each night. I rarely make a meal out of my customers, especially the honest, hard-working ones who desire a movie to ease the troubles of their days. No, I made it a point to only rid society of the ones it would not miss. I tried to teach my boys the same morals, and according to my eldest son, he's made an effort to follow my ethics. However they sometimes pluck a policeman who hindered their merriment on the boardwalk. While I look down upon that behavior, I don't care too much as long as they clean up the evidence.

The customers mean little to me. I do appreciate their business. After all, if not for them my business would crumble which would ruin my façade as an honest human among the thousand others trying to scape through in this meaningless life. Paul once asked me why I chose not to flaunt my wealth and live as a king. I replied that I wish not to have more attention on me than I have already received. Those who were lucky to survive over three decades in this town have glared at me behind the glass. No doubt they remember me when they were young men only to find out that they have aged while my appearance remains the same. I dwell in a nice house with many possessions. I have a decent reputation within the town. I have a family which I love and would willingly give my life for (and while the boys may try and dismiss it, the feelings are reciprocated). I need for nothing but one thing. That one item currently stood behind the counter.

I've kept my eyes on her since she began the shift. I believe I've found my soulmate in Lucy Emmerson. She is everything I desire: warm, loving, and maternal, three qualities I require for my queen. I told her my intentions for her last night, but I'm not quite sure if she caught on. Humans are not the brightest of creatures. While it is true that women are usually more intelligent, especially when it comes to matters of the heart, I've been told countless times that my way of wording things could use some work.

David tells me repeatedly that I'm rushing it with Lucy. He's probably right and I should heed his advice, he can tell when something is wrong when I am blinded by my emotions. Although he plays the tough guy role, I know that David looks out for me, the last thing he wants is for a woman to hurt me again.

Barely twenty years ago I thought I found my true love with Greta. Her lovely countenance blinded me. Her words of desiring love and a family were mere lies. Had I Dwayne's ability to sense emotions, I could have exposed the liar she was, but unfortunately for me, I saw only what I wanted.

David warned me that Greta often threatened him with death the second she received Santa Carla's crown. I laughed it off as David trying once more to foil my chance of finding a mate. I knew that he was comfortable with his position in life and not having to have a mother to answer to. For the most part he is obedient and carries out my wishes to the best of his ability. He knows firsthand that the punishment for disobedience was severe. I ordered him to carry out the execution. Despite the fact that he refuses to speak of his emotions on that moment, I know that it still haunts him to this day. However we both understood that it was what was best for the family. He is a good child, still he has a wild streak, one that no amount of threats can tame. Now that the other three have conformed to his ways they have become quite a handful. One or two I could handle, but four boys is pushing my sanity. David and the others enjoy not having anyone to answer to too much. That was why I originally brushed his warnings off. It was not until I discovered it for myself that I believed him.

It was mere days before our union. I gave that lovely woman immortality and accepted her into my family. The first night David met Greta he told me he did not trust her. I should have trusted his judgment, but once again, I thought it was only his stubborn streak and desire to keep his ways that caused me to push his words aside.

A few days before our wedding the boys came into the store. They had a habit of stepping through that threshold despite the fact that I warned them innumerous times that the record store was off limits (mind you this was about twenty years ago, videotapes had yet to be invented). I warned David of the dangers of our race being discovered by hunters were they able to pin my relation to them, not to mention it would ruin the business. I gave David specific instructions never to enter the store unless it was of the utmost importance. Usually he entered and dawdled about, making a nuisance of themselves and distracting my employees just for the fun of annoying me. I was about to kick them out, again, but then noticed the disdain in David's usually cocky eyes. I looked upon the faces of all three to see each one wore a scowl. This was before I adopted Marco. David whispered in my ear that I needed to accompany him to the beach immediately. I would never hastily leave the store like that, but the sincerity in David's eyes and voice persuaded me otherwise.

I asked Mona if she would look after the store while I stepped out momentarily. She agreed and I promised her that she would be paid a bonus for this. On any other occasion I would never leave my livelihood in the hands of such an incompetent woman, but I felt the intense urge to see what David so earnestly wanted me to see. I wonder what really happened to Mona. I know Paul was interested in her at one point, but soon after their one date she vanished. I interrogated him, but he refused to mention any connection to her disappearance. The other boys were not willing to break their bond. I love that my sons are that close, but sometimes it makes it difficult to control them.

Anyway, the boys silently led me to the beach. I watched the three of them as we ventured to our destination. The anger radiating through the three was intense. While I can communicate telepathically with David, he made an effort not to reveal any information just yet. I later found out that he did not wish me to form any biases from his thoughts and that he wanted me to see the truth for myself.

We reached the beach and hid behind the pier. I asked David why he brought me here and his finger replied as it landed on two figures in the distance. I removed my fake glasses and squinted to see my bride-to-be draped in a revealing, red dress. At first I smiled at her delicate curves. I turned to David to thank him for setting this up. The glare that covered his face reminded me of the time we shredded two slayers when they beat Dwayne and Paul senseless. They would have killed them had it not been for David's quick thinking. I trusted that glare and returned my gaze to Greta to see her passionately kissing another man, a much younger and more handsome mortal man.

I stood there in shock. I could not believe that the love of my life would display herself like that in public and writhe beneath another man. Had I not given her everything she desired. I had given her eternal life and was about to make her my queen. I am aware that I am not the most handsome of the undead, in fact on the scale of vampiric beauty I rank at the bottom of the list. Still I loved her with my entire heart and she repaid me by giving herself to a no one who would gradually age and rot, maybe much quicker if my boys got their hands on him.

The instant I returned to reality I dashed away from the group. I stopped before reaching her in order to calm myself. Perhaps she was only feeding and this was her way of seducing her prey. Either way she had to be instructed that her behavior was not fitting of a queen. I took a deep breath then calmly approached the couple. The instant her hazel eyes found me she threw herself off of the stranger.

"Max!" she exclaimed. It took a few seconds for her to gather her bearings. "It's not what it looks like."

"Uh, yeah it is," the man replied. He looked up at me with disgust. "Who are you?"

"I could ask you the same," I said. This man was not my primary target. By the tone in his voice it was obvious that he had been deceived by the same woman. I could not guarantee to spare him from my sons' wrath, but he would at least escape mine.

Greta nudged him in the stomach with her knee. He looked at her and the anger switched to sorrow.

"Oh, man, I didn't…is she…" he looked down at the woman. "Is he your man?"

"I was," I said trying to hide my crushed feelings. "Not anymore."

"Max, I swear it…" Greta pleaded grabbing my leg. "It's all a mistake."

I knelt down beside her and wiped away a falling tear. "Greta, had I not given you what many women would kill for?"

She grasped my hand. "I swear, Max, it's all a mistake. I love you, no one else." She began sobbing. Her lover threw his shirt over his frame. I closed my eyes and searched Greta's feelings. I opened my eyes to see I was correct with my assumptions that her tears were more out of fear than contrition.

"We're finished," I said without making eye contact.

"Max, please," she begged, tugging on my hand.

"I'm really sorry," the human stated looking between me and her. "She told me she was single, I swear I didn't know."

I placed a hand on his shoulder. I could feel his pulse racing and the rushing blood smelt scrumptious. I could tell from his eyes that he spoke the truth.

"We both lucked out by discovering the truth," I said to him then turned my back to both. I watched him whisper an insult to Greta before taking his leave.

"Max, give me another chance," she said behind tears.

I felt a stinging in my heart. My brain flashed our many memories behind my eyes. There were so many lovely memories that I wanted to cherish forever with my bride. I looked down at her to see the pitiful look on her flawless features. Still there was doubt in my heart radiating from the false emotions.

I quickly looked over at David who silently shook his head. I gave David's answer as my own and walked away leaving her in tears. It is a vampire law that when one betrays their sire (especially if she is the higher vampire's intended), especially for a mortal, that lawfully the sire can eliminate the other (exceptions being if the higher ranked vampire is abusing his power and/or is terrorizing humans to the point where it would bring too much mortal attention to the vampire community, but now is not the time for discussing the vampire legal system). While I know I should destroy her, I just couldn't. I still loved her so much.

"Just give the word," David whispered as I passed by. I looked at the boy to find focused fury in his eyes, an emotion shared between all the boys. We stood in silence for a few moment. I watched the loathing grow within them. Their thoughts consisted of brutal thoughts that would make the toughest vampire cringe. If allowed they would ravage her until her corpse was unrecognizable. Despite what she did I could not allow something so brutal to occur from my own instructions.

I never answered him and left them to boil as I returned to the store in silence.

The following night, on my way to the store, I found the boys walking along the side of the road with bitter faces. They looked calm, much too calm compared to last night's occurrence. I held my breath upon seeing them covered in vampire blood. At first I thought they had been attacked, but those worries diminished the moment I saw the dying rage in their eyes.

I called their names and pulled the car over to the side of the road they occupied. They stopped in their tracks, staring at me strongly with no smiles.

"What did you do?" I asked, not entirely wanting to know.

"She won't hurt you again," David replied solemnly. "I give you my word." They then turned away and disappeared into the darkness.

Needless to say Greta's body has yet to be recovered.

This has been the first time in years I've thought about her. Most of my recent thoughts have been merry, primarily because they somehow involve Lucy. I doubt Lucy will ever treat me that cruel. She opened up to me about her horrid husband. If I ever met the creep I would teach him a new meaning to the word fear. It baffles me how someone could willingly harm someone as pure and loving as Lucy. She's a beautiful woman inside and out, a rarity in this world of selfish beings. She almost gives me a reason to reconsider my thoughts on the human race over the past fifty years. I love her.

Besides, David never said he disliked Lucy, he just mentioned I should take my time on choosing a bride. Although he and the others did try to scare her off a week ago and may have succeeded had I not shown up to rescue her. She was a bit shaken up afterwards, but the boys would do nothing to cause her harm. Later that night when I confronted David about it, he said it was all in fun. I'm not sure whether or not I believe him, but it's all in the past now and the boys gave me their word that they would never pull a stunt like that again. Thus far they kept true to their promise.

Tonight the schedule included only me, Lucy, and Diana. I had begun to consider closing the store early based on the lack of customers.

Diana had been working to closing every night this week. Dwayne fancies her, not that he will admit to it, but I can see it in his eyes when he looks at her. It's subtle, but I have learned to read his silent emotions. He's the polar opposite of Paul, who is upfront and loud about his crush on Maria directly to her face. I've advised him to calm down and perhaps she would consider him, but there is no use talking to Paul.

Diana has been awful quiet lately. No doubt she still worries over the absence of her boyfriend. As of now she thinks (or at least hopes) he just ran away. I know the truth. Dwayne found out about Diana's boyfriend running around on her and thought she deserved better. Being the good girl she is, she still hadn't left him despite knowing of his cheating. Dwayne took justice into his own hands and took the unfaithful kid out of the picture. When asked he still denies that he cares for her. Dwayne is a caring soul. It's nice to see him finally falling in love again after the tragic death of his beloved Stephanie. * She was a nice girl, true vampire material, and he loved her dearly. Unfortunately fate desired his tears and her body refused to accept Dwayne's blood. He blamed my mortal servant for years for his inability to save her, but eventually the two came to an understanding and Dwayne finally accepted it as the accident it truly was. Dwayne is a good protector and incredibly loyal and loving to his loved ones. However I have high doubts that Diana would be willing to leave the sunlight she loves too much. Dwayne cares too much to ask her to make that sacrifice.

David should leave that cheating whore he's courting. He can do much better and he knows it, but he feels a responsibility towards her since he's the one who turned her. That's one of his best qualities and one of his greatest flaws: his devotion to the family. He makes it his own personal responsibility to look after each of his brothers and take on my laws and requests. It's one of the reasons I trust him so much. Perhaps I put too much pressure on the boy, but he's the only one I can really trust. He's the only one I can discuss my plans with and the only one whose opinion I sincerely consider with my decisions. Perhaps it's wrong, and I would never admit it to any of my sons, but I do believe I love David the most. I mean I would willingly die for any of them, but the bond me and David share is too great. The others blame me of favoritism, but in all honesty David earned it.

As for Marco, the poor boy can't seem to find anyone to take an interest in him. Paul has tried to help but ends up making the situation much worse. Well, I suppose we all have relationship issues. I do love Marco, he has this minor hint of innocence about him that the undead life has yet to steal from him. Although the other boys are certain the innocence is only a mask, and to some degree they are correct, but I still want to believe he has some of that naivety. He sure has grown up since that scrape with that slayer when he foolishly ran away from the pack two years ago. David said it was partly an errand to prove himself as well as wanting to escape mine and David's rules. He thought that by becoming a vampire he would not have to live under a set of rules, but he was mistaken. David can be a tad bossy, but I believe he was justified in handling the situation with Marco. It took a brutal lesson, but Marco realized the errors of his ways. He's come to accept his place in the family and I have not had any trouble with him since.

My family is my life. I love and adore each of my sons, even though they enjoy pushing the limits. I must admit I don't have a firm handle on my children, which is why I think they desperately need a mother. I only fear that someone as kind as Lucy will let them run all over her. She allows her youngest son to rule her, but maybe once she turns she'll become fiercer and find a way to make the boys behave.

I want to spend more time with Lucy, but I rarely get to see her. My only concern is that she'll find out what I am before I have time to marry and turn her. I know it's wrong to deceive her in that manner, but after Greta, I shall never turn my intended until I am certain that it is me she desires. I only hope she will not hate me upon discovering what I truly am. Once she tastes my blood she will understand everything. She has a family of her own so she is aware of what must be done to ensure the best interest of one's children.

I have David working on turning Michael. I am lucky the two get along so well. If Michael joins the family maybe he can convince his younger brother to join, then Lucy will willingly comply. Unfortunately Dwayne informed me that the whore may interfere with our plans. If not certain that David would resent me I'd have him take her out immediately. I cannot understand why he wants someone so loose for his bride. He is still young and after all he's done to make sure I take my time on finding the one I know he won't rush things. Paul assured me that he has no love for her, only lust. Maybe David will grow bored of her soon and be rid of her. In the meantime I only hope that the whore will not come between David and Michael otherwise I'll have to intervene and that girl will have to go. I'd hate to make David hate me, but if it must be done for the good of the family…so be it.

The night dragged on. I noticed the two women glancing up at the clock often. It must be torture for these working girls to see the hand moving so slowly. For me the night was not too bad as I had the splendid opportunity to talk with my beloved. Lucy is great for conversation. I at least know that my eternal life will not be boring as my wife and I will continue to have intelligent conversations for the rest of forever.

The fates must be laughing when they cut those plans short. Diana rushed to the sound of ringing, not wanting to interfere with two love birds for something as simple as a telephone call. Unfortunately she informed me that the lawyer was on the other line. It confused me why he was calling so late, but wanting to deal with this problem as quickly as possible I excused myself and had Diana transfer the call to my office phone.

I sat down in my cushioned chair and placed the device against my ear. It still amazes me how far the human race had come in the past century. The telephone keeps evolving, they now have cellular phones that you can carry around with you in your car. Sure they're bulky, but Douglas told me that it was essential when on the go. The poor man, I do hope he rests in peace and won't have to answer in the afterlife for serving me a good majority of his life. He was a loyal man.

I listened to the lawyer speak on behalf of the bank. Supposedly there was a missed payment from last month. I pulled out my records and assured him that the check was mailed. He spoke on the other line with the banker. It was frustrating dealing imbecile humans, but I chose to remain polite. After all they were being nice enough to have this conversation at this hour due to the fact that I can never make it in before sunrise. That would be an odd conversation to have with my banker. The lawyer, Jason Trevor, is aware of what I really am. He's nowhere near the leagues that Douglas was in when it comes to servitude, I mean I cannot consider Trevor a friend as I did with Douglas, but the mortal gets the job done. It surprises me what a human will do for money.

After ten minutes of communicating with these humans Trevor finally found the filing error that the bank missed. I could feel the banker's humiliation, but I was not one to hold grudges. After all they are only human. I had to laugh at that one. Finally when all this was finished I thanked Trevor and informed him that an extra check would be coming his way in a week's time. The man smiled and told me how great it was to work for someone like me. That's another thing about mortals, they're what David would call suck ups.

I stood and stretched before heading back to the front of the store. I'm sure that Lucy and Diana could handle things while I stepped out, but I just hated being so far from my little peach blossom. Hmm…I understood why David thinks I rush into love.

I reached the front to hear yelling. I then heard Lucy's voice sweetly trying to calm the customer. I could listen to her talk all day. She has such a lovely speaking voice. I turned the corner and my heart skipped upon seeing exactly who was shouting at my Lucy.

"Did you not just hear me, you insignificant disgrace of humanity?" David yelled into Lucy's face.

The momentary shock switched to anger. I know that was not my beloved son raising his voice at his soon-to-be mother. I was not having that. "David!" I shouted.

David's tough exterior cracked as he looked at me. In addition to ceasing the rudeness, I had to stop him before he unintentionally let his true identity slip. The boy had excellent self-control, but in moments of panic and extreme anger his eyes flashed. David was aware of that which is probably why he quickly corrected himself. Either that or he was afraid of me. While still angry I was somewhat curious to David's intrusion. Still there were more important matters at hand. I approached Lucy and apologized to her for David's behavior.

My attention turned to him and I said, "I've taught you better manners than that, now apologize."

David glared at me and growled but promptly obeyed my order. He made no effort to show any sincerity in his apology. I rolled my eyes.

David glared at me again and I said, "I've told you about coming in here."

David cut me off and shouted, "But this is important!"

I was taken back, very rarely has David raised his voice at me, not to mention the other three were not present, therefore I believed the urgency. I looked at Lucy and decided it was best she not hear this. I glanced at David then looked back at Lucy to apologize for the interruption. I grabbed David by the shoulder and pulled him out of Lucy and Diana's listening range.

David seemed to be short of breath. He kept fidgeting and looking about the store. That settled it, something was wrong.

"What's wrong?" I asked worried.

"Max, please, you gotta' help us," David pleaded. It was even rarer for David to beg.

"David," I began.

"You know I wouldn't bother you for help if I didn't need it."

"David, slow down."

"Max, they almost killed us."

"Who?"

David inhaled. His spoke, but his voice was still a bit shaky, "They seriously injured Paul and Dwayne. They came this close to killing them," David explained giving an estimate with his fingers. He looked down at his bloodstained hand and said, "I tried to keep them from…but they were too fast." That was when I noticed the blood on his hand was not human.

"Dwayne and Paul, where are they?" I asked frantically. "Are they okay?"

"For now," he answered. "Marco's looking out for them. These guys are quick and have top-notch vampire-killing weapons. They stabbed Dwayne with a poisoned blade—I think it was blessed water."

"Are you talking about those two vampire-hunting children?" I asked not believing those arrogant, ridiculous brats could have such skills or tools. The weapons seemed too sophisticated for them.

"No, these are men," David clarified. "Men trained to kill vampires, sent here to do that job. And almost succeeded." In the many years I've known David, I've never seen him so afraid.

"And you all escaped? Alive?" Those boys' safety was my top priority.

"Barely," David said shaking. "Max, there's no way Dwayne and I can take them on by ourselves. We're not strong enough." He shifted. "We killed two, but the other three are still strong and in pursuit. Marco and I grabbed the other two and took off, but they chased us. We couldn't go back to the cave, they'd follow us."

"They followed you?" I asked.

I became angry at David's idiocy and slapped him without thinking.

"So you came here?" I shouted. David touched his face and nodded. His eyes widened upon realization that he could have led the vampire slayers to the store. I then realized what I did and felt horrible. "David, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hit you."

David stopped my apology, "What are we going to do?" That's David. Even when he was treated harshly (even, as was in this case, if he deserved it) he thought about the family. David is a wonderful big brother, the most protective of my sons, but even his strength can fall short and he has to depend on me. I know he hates having to admit that, so I decided to deal with him as quick as possible.

I thought for a moment then reached into my jacket pocket and pulled out my key ring. I keep three spare keys to my house in case of an emergency.

I released one of the keys and said, "I want you boys to go home, not to the cave, to my house." I handed David the key and said, "You four are to stay in there until tomorrow night."

David nodded and headed for the door.

I suddenly remembered their destructive behavior and stopped him. "David!" He turned around and looked at me. "Don't make any noise. And do not touch anything when you get there."

David nodded and swiftly left.

I noticed Lucy and Diana staring at me. The instant they knew I was looking in their direction Lucy turned away and Diana pretended to be working on something. I walked over to Lucy and put my hand on her shoulder.

"Who is he?" she asked.

I had wanted to keep my family a secret for as long as possible, but it seems fate had other plans. Oh well, she would find out eventually. "I guess now's a good time as any." I took a deep breath and said, "That's David. He's my son."

I hoped that this information would not push Lucy away. David was not the nicest of people and he had attempted to scare her a few nights ago, and succeeded. I will have to have a talk with him later about his behavior towards her tonight, but I won't scold him too severely, he was in a state of panic. However I cannot have him talking to her like that. Perhaps now that she knows that my son is the same age as hers it will strengthen our bond.

"Son?" she asked.

I suppose it would be hard to believe that the very kid I kick out of my store at least twice a week is my own child. "Yes. Adopted son, but son nonetheless." I then remember how rude he had treated her every time they met. "Don't let this come between us. I promise he'll be better behaved next time."

She giggled. How I love her laugh. It sounded as though she was nervous, but it was still a treat to hear her laugh, especially at such a tense moment. "It's not that," she said. "When you said you had kids, I was thinking small children."

I never meant to mislead her, I just intended to keep secret my relationship to the hooligans who frightened her not after a week of being in town. Anyway, I decided to clear things up for her. "Oh. I should have been more specific." I laughed and decided to change the subject if just to make her feel more comfortable. "Anyway, he's rather fond of your son, Michael."

"He knows Michael?" she asked.

I smiled and replied, "Yeah, all my boys told me they liked hanging around Michael. No doubt they've already played a few pranks on him." I noticed her facial expression briefly change. I immediately regretted telling her that. "I'm sorry if they did anything to scare him, they only have good intentions." I felt it important to let her know that the boys were not as awful as they seemed. Sure there was that small detail of them killing her kind every night, but once you got past that they were harmless.

She smiled and looked down as she said, "I'm just glad he's making friends." She looked back up at my face and continued, "I was afraid he would have such a hard time adapting to life here." She inched closer to me. "It's so different for them."

I placed one arm around Lucy's back and with my other hand I began gently stroking her gold locks. At first she found it pleasant, but the smile soon left as she pushed my hand away. I decided it was best not to ask.

"So is everything okay with?" she asked. She looked somewhat apprehensive, almost afraid of me. I could not understand why, I would never do anything to harm her. She then spoke up and cleared up all confusion. "Do you normally discipline him that harsh?"

I was initially shocked by the question. I was even somewhat offended that she dare assume I abused my children. Then it dawned on me that I had struck David in front of her. Sure it was only one of two times I ever laid a hand on my son, but she recently told me that her ex-husband was a horrible excuse for a husband and father. I figured there was physical abuse in that relationship, but felt it was not my place to pry. She would open up to me if she desired. I now worried that I ruined my chance with her because I acted out in anger.

I figured I should clear the air as soon as possible. "No, very rarely," I said. It seemed as though Lucy was not convinced. I continued, "Only when he does something that foolish, which is not often. They could've lost their lives tonight for their foolishness and almost worsened it by acting out in panic." I turned to face the door. I hoped that Lucy believed me. The last thing I wanted was for my employees, especially Lucy, to think I was an abusive father. It was a mistake, but that slap barely even stung. David would have told me if I hurt him. I then added, "If anything I'm too lenient with those boys." I turned to Lucy and smiled, which seemed to ease her worries. "Don't worry, I've taken care of their mistake, they'll be fine." As I spoke those words my every hope was the boys getting to the safety of my house. Marco and Paul should be nearly healed by the time they reach the house. But if they're attacked before they'll have no chance of survival.

Lucy zoned out. I didn't want her to be afraid of me. After tonight I wouldn't be surprised if she wanted to wait a while to court. I had hoped to turn her by the end of the month, but sometimes these things take time. Still, my impatient side was not willing to wait.

"So have you decided?" I asked. "You still want to go out to dinner?"

She gave me a smile and nodded before saying, "That would be lovely."

I took hold of Lucy's hand and was about to say something when we both saw two figures entering the store. Despite the irritation I could not help but laugh at the irony. We had not had a soul all night, but soon as we're about to leave multiple guests want to walk in. I turned to greet our last customers of the night when I noticed they were surveying the store.

I heard one of them mutter, "He said that vampire ran in here." I frowned. The other man clenched a pointed object in his hand, a stake I presumed.

The one with the stake pulled the other close and said, "Don't hesitate this time. The second you see him, kill him."

My frown grew. No doubt these were the ones after my sons. I could already feel their necks between my fingers. My only confusion was that David mentioned that three remained alive and chased them down, while only two stood before me. I turned to the women and twisted my lips. Sure I was quick, but it was too risky with them in the room. I smiled as I spotted crates that needed to be moved. I had intended to do so tomorrow night after the sale, but as for now it would work as the perfect distraction. Seven of the crates were yellow and two were blue. Perfect.

"Lucy," I said sweetly. She smiled at me. "Can you and Diana take those two blue crates of tapes to the back and store them in the closet." My attention turned to the two men lurking around the store. "I'll take care of our last two tonight." She and Diana promptly picked up the crates and headed to the back closet.

I approached the two men with my trademark smile. David informed me that it comes off as cheesy, but the customers appreciate someone who comes across as friendly and humble. "How may I help you gentlemen this evening?" I asked offering my hand.

The older one stepped forward and shook my hand. "We're looking for someone."

"Could you be more specific?" I asked. "I have two female employees, but they're taking care of something in the back, and a third who works during the day."

The human shook his head. "No, a male. About my height, spiky blonde hair, dressed in all black," he described.

"Oh," I said. These two were definitely the ones who threatened my children. Their last minutes were already being numbered. I smiled at the two. "Was there something really strange about him?"

They nodded in synchrony.

I leaned in close to the two and whispered, "I noticed the same thing you did and realized how dangerous he was. Is he a friend of yours?"

The human's eyes narrowed. "Friends with that filth? Never!"

"We're here to deal with him," said the other. "He won't harm you, I promise."

I straightened my posture then said, "I have him locked up in my office, planned on calling the police." I said. "Follow me."

I led them to the back. The younger one was eager to follow, the older one kept his eyes fixed on me in suspicion.

"Be careful, he's dangerous," I said as I brought out the key. That one piece of lacking information had to be answered for my own peace of mind. "Are there only two of you?"

"A third is surveying the perimeter," answered the other. "We will catch this thing."

My heart skipped as I thought of the third slayer catching the weakened ones off guard. No, by the time they arrived David would have joined back up with the others. No matter the slayer's strength he and Marco can eliminate that one.

I unlocked the office door and allowed them entry.

The younger one dashed in and turned on the lights. The second one pulled out the stake and held it in front of his chin, ready to strike. I followed them inside and closed the door.

"Where is he?" the eldest slayer asked.

"He's probably hiding," the other replied. "Or escaped."

"This room has no window," I said as I locked the door.

"Then where is the vampire?" the first one asked angrily.

I turned away from them and removed my glasses.

"Let me ask you this. If someone threatened your family, what would you do?"

"Oh, don't even get me started on what I would do," the younger one said clenching his fist.

The older slayer put his hand up to the other to shut him up. I could feel him glaring at the back of my head. "Where is the vampire?"

I transformed, smiled, then turned towards them.

"And you dared to hurt my kids!" I hissed. The younger slayer screamed as my nails ripped into their flesh, slitting from the abdomens up to their necks. I wanted to do so much more, but I was pressed for time. I looked over my handiwork and smiled. I wanted to gloat further, but knew how horrible it would be if someone came by and saw two dead bodies in my office. The blood I could cover up as accidentally cutting myself, but two corpses is a different story. I quickly placed their corpses in boxes, took the boxes outside and threw them inside a metal, trash bin. I lit a match and watched it set ablaze, quickly erasing all evidence. I then went back out front to turn out the lights just seconds before Lucy and Diana returned.

Diana looked around then asked me where the two men had gone.

"Oh," I said trying to think of something quick. "Turns out they were supposed to meet their friends at some bar." Just to make it a more convincing story I added, "As if they need any more to drink."

Diana snickered and grabbed her coat. She bid us farewell and left the store.

I put on my brown, leather gloves to hide the bloodstains on my fingers and nails. Lucy picked up her book from the counter. I grabbed Lucy's purse from behind the counter and handed it to her. She placed her book inside then put the purse over her shoulder.

"What do you feel like tonight?" I asked.

"Surprise me," Lucy said with a giggle.

I locked up the building and made a mental note to return after our date to clean the blood off the floor. At least I could rest seeing as how the remains of those who threatened by boys were smoldering out back.

Before leaving I said, "How about we walk until you find something you like. Then we'll eat."

Lucy nodded and smiled at me. I'd do anything to see her smile like that. We left the store and headed down to the boardwalk for our night out. Just one look in her eyes reminded me that I had found my intended.

* * *

* This is a reference to a flashback scene in my story Runaway. I think I might actually write another story that bridges the gap between Curtis and Runaway which will include more on Dwayne and Stephanie's short-lived relationship.

Thank you for reading!


	3. David

Disclaimer: I do not own The Lost Boys.

Thank you Nightcrawlerlover, Ghostwriter, My Mother's Worst Nightmare, and Freak Scene for your reviews!

Author's Notes:

1) This chapter originally had a different ending, but I changed it so it would fit along with the Santa Carla Chronicles which follows my other stories: _The Only Way, Curtis_, and _Runaway_ (as well as any others I may add in between).

2) I'm not going to go into too deep detail on David's vampire origins. If you are interested in that story please check out _The Only_ _Way_, which this chapter will contain heavy references to. There are spoilers for that story in this chapter.

2) I decided that there **will** be a fourth chapter. I originally was going to go for Paul (and several of you wanted it to be Paul), but because I changed the a detail in the plot by having Marco be the one who is conscious and protecting the others while David is inside, I think it would be better to see the next chapter from Marco. I'm not going to do one from Dwayne's point-of-view because I really don't know how Dwayne would speak, especially in a situation like this. But maybe one day, if I really want to I'll do one from Dwayne, but I'm thinking of ending this at four chapters, but we'll see how that goes. Who knows, after writing this I'm somewhat inspired to do one from the slayers' POV, but that's probably not going to happen. After all I don't want this story to grow stale. Marco's POV will most likely be the last chapter.

3) WARNING: There is a violent fight scene in this chapter as well as one really graphic scene involving Greta from the last chapter, which includes eye gouging. If that disturbs or scares you, you may want to skip that scene as it won't affect the plot as a whole if you miss that scene. There are also a lot of dark thoughts and humor as this chapter comes from David's point of view.

Without further delay, here is the story told from David's viewpoint!

* * *

Santa Carla belongs to us. We are the lost boys, a pack of vampires who once belonged to the mundane society of the mindless zombies known as human beings. It's a funny thought that zombies are often classified in the same category with vampires as the undead, yet we're the ones who have full control over our brains. We do what we want. When we want. And how we want. There's no one to answer to, none of this morality garbage the human race are so connected with. They feed off the golden rule of how they should treat each other. It must give their pathetic lives purpose, make them feel better about themselves. If only they knew the truth about death. Perhaps they could if they knew how to escape their dying day.

That ridiculous way of life passed us when the leader of our group, Max, showed us our true potential. He came to me first. Max, a lonely man in search of a family found me, a lonely kid in search of something different. Me, David, a rebel to the death. And that's where I was, laying out on death's doorstep. The stupid reality of mortality hit me at an early age of eighteen. I was proud. I thought there was no way that a catastrophe could fall on someone like me, someone with a strong body and a bad attitude. I was in no way weak, but that didn't stop the earthquake from selecting me. It already claimed many and my name was on the list.

I accompanied my mother to that posh hotel. She hoped the vacation would relieve her of her stress and hopefully straighten me out. What wishful thinking on her part. I loved my mother with all my heart, she was one person I would willingly die for, but she was a fool to believe she could change me. The majority of my relatives and Mother's friends and acquaintances felt I was an embarrassment to her and my father's name. That was something I was not going to take. My father was a great man, for a human he did the best he could. Unfortunately disease could care less about a person's character when selecting its victim. In a way people compare my kind to diseases.

But I digress. My father was a man of good character. Of all these wretched mortals who corrupt this planet he is one I'm proud to have called my biological human father. I remember the time when Robert Henderson had the gall to insult my father by saying he was a weak man for raising such an insolent child. I do believe he lost four teeth and suffered three broken ribs and two black eyes by the time I was finished with him. I don't recall many memories from my human life, but guarding my father's honor along with the death of my mother are two that will remain etched in my mind for the rest of my immortal life.

Every detail is still fresh in my mind. I saw the building collapse into the fault. I can still hear their screams, though from my eighty years of hearing that sound I have become accustomed to it. In fact I find a sort of solace in that shrill melody. But that night was different. I can still hear them crying out for a divine being to send rescuers their way. And my mother. I still see the stalagmite piercing her chest. It was fate that we stood only feet apart and she was chosen to die and not me.

That was the night I was destined to meet Max. Everything was pitch black within that cave, yet it was as though he could see me. It didn't seem possible, but in hindsight it now amuses me. He chose to let me live. He said he saw something in me that separated me from the rest of the human race, something that made me special. He has yet to tell me what exactly that special thing was, but who am I to complain? That night he selected me to be the firstborn of his line. I became a lost boy, one who gave up his humanity to be a part of something better.

There were no limits to my new life. Though there were rules such as keeping a low profile, discarding the bodies, and leaving no witnesses alive (Max's number one rule), I had a new power, a new reason for existence. I wanted to purge this world of useless humans. Max suggested that I choose people who were not as likely to be missed, for the most part I agreed. Not to mention the world could do without criminals and idiots.

The only downside to this new life was the loneliness. There were none I could really talk to. It was not until I met with Curtis that I felt that I could have a friend in this new life. However when he became too much of a hazard to our lives Max ordered me to do away with him. It was a painful act, but it proved to be a simple task for me. It was another twenty years before I found another I could consider a brother.

In the mid fifties I met Dwayne. He was a stubborn teen looking for something more in his life when he ran into me. Ten years later we encountered Paul, a hippie who became disenchanted when seeing the awful things humans would do to each other. When given a chance to break from the horrid ways of humanity he accepted it. Then about two years ago we had the privilege of bringing Marco into our family. Ever since the new boys were added to my group, I enjoyed my time with them. They're not that bad, at times I wanted to strangle them and leave them to the mercy of the sunrise, but I don't think I could live without them. With them around I wasn't lonely anymore.

I think it was because of the loneliness that Max adopted them. He wanted me to enjoy my life fun and have friends. I don't think he realized that we'd go that wild on him. At times I wonder if we should tone it down a bit, just for him. However the instant we meet with that Santa Carla evening air the thrill takes control of us and all my thoughts concerning Max's rules and wishes abandon me.

Max does care for us. And though we'd never admit it, we feel the same way. He's our leader and our father. It's just not in our nature to openly display affection for the one who sired us.

Max must feel lonely too, that's why he wants a queen, someone to love and act as our mother. As if we need one. He must find us too wild and believes that having a wife will keep a tighter hold on us. He must be an idiot if he thinks we're going to submit to the whims of some woman. I won't do it, and the others aren't too thrilled about the idea either. But I can put on an act if it will make Max happy. He has sacrificed much for us.

The day he met that so-called woman Greta, he fell for her like a vampire's victim. He had been with her for several weeks before finally breaking the news to us. That being after we came into the store and saw him sweet-talking her. That night when he arrived at his house we surrounded him on our bikes and hounded him for answers. He openly admitted that he felt she could be his intended. In our culture we are allowed one to be our bride. The other two (as this was before we met Marco) laughed at his crush for some lowly human. I gave them the silent glare which instructed them to hush. With a nod of my head the three of us left

The following week I kept a close eye on that Greta. There was something about her I didn't like. It was the way she looked at him with those beady eyes. There was something going on behind those eyes that I didn't trust. She was planning something. If only I could have found a way to look into her thoughts and read her true intentions. At the time she didn't know of Max's immortality. She must've wanted his money. Those slutty eyes were a dead giveaway the moment I met her. Each time she laughed those eyes lit up with such a false sincerity. Dwayne has the ability to read people's emotions. When he watched her and Max talk he could tell there was no truth to her words. I wanted to stab her eyes out right there in front of Max and expose her for the fraud she was.

When I confronted her about the reasons she wanted Max she gave me a sweet laugh and no reason. We met a few times after that, each time I wanted to slap that sugar-coated false smile off her face. I hated her eyes. They were so fake, a mask for the pile of manuer that she really is. An eternal life was not meant for garbage like her.

Then one night we were summoned to a party at Max's manor. There he announced to us that he intended her as his queen. She kissed his cheek. The others showed no enthusiasm, much to Max's annoyance. I had no time to see his feelings as I was focused on those lying eyes. She had the eyes of a traitor. Just one look into those hazel doors to a soul of refuse made bile rise up my throat. She took me out on the balcony on the second level where we could talk.

"You don't like me, do you, David?" Greta asked.

"No, I don't," I said. I was never one to hide the truth, why start now with that cheap whore.

Her disgusting eyes narrowed and she placed the goblet of blood down on the balcony railing. "You know, soon I will be queen of Santa Carla."

I crossed my arms. "Is that why you're so into Max?" I stepped forward, she slightly shrunk back. Good, she should know her place. I will never bow down to this woman. Whether Max intends her to be my mother or not. It was only fair I give her a warning. "I will do anything I can in order to protect my father."

"He doesn't need your protection from me," she scoffed. Her voice was almost as wretched as her eyes.

"I'll protect him from anyone who tries to hurt him," I stated again. My voice showed no signs of backing down. "It's what a family does." I inched closer and placed an arm on the column beside her. "If that means keeping him from you, then so be it."

Greta brought those robust lips into a smile. "You're just afraid of what will happen to you when I'm made queen," she said, slightly squinting those filthy eyes. "And you should be," she considered. If only Max was around to hear her threatening me. "When I'm made queen, your death will be my first priority." She leaned closer so that I could smell her sunflower perfume. "And I'll make it look like an accident."

She left me after speaking those words and turned back to the entrance of the house. Her enormous bottom, too big for that revealing, gold, satin dress shook with each step. No doubt it was that body that mesmerized Max into selecting her. I decided it was best for Max to hear my opinion on this bitch before she was given the power she desired.

When I spoke to Max about these feelings he dismissed them as my way of trying to break them up. He had the gall to tell me that I only wanted things to remain the same and would try to ruin any chance he ever had at finding a queen. When I renounced these accusations he had the audacity to insult me with words such as "liar" and "ingrate." I became cold at those statements and left. But I did not part from him until I gave him one last warning to watch out for her. Those were the last words we spoke for the next two weeks.

Our next conversation consisted of Max apologizing for lashing out at me. He still rejected my worries. Once the apologies were spoken Max tried to set up a meeting between me and Greta. He stated that by actually meeting her I would realize there was nothing for me to fear. I immediately refused no matter how he tried to persuade or threaten me. I insisted the other boys follow my lead to which they obeyed. Max was not pleased with us, in fact he showed true disappointment in our decision for the next month. Everytime we walked into the store, instead of kicking us out, he chose not to look at us. It stung, but I knew I was a correct judge of her character. I just had to find a way for Max to see it too. But he was so wrapped up in his own blissful emotions at finally finding a soulmate that he didn't even stop to think that she could possibly have faults.

Then one night the moment finally arrived. I saw her walking into another man's hotel room. I waited outside the hotel until she left with some raggedy man hanging on her shoulder. I still didn't have proof that would convince Max. I told my brothers who all shared the same fury as myself. The next night we were out walking on the beach when I spotted that slut rolling on the sand in that man's arms. By now Max had turned her and their wedding was only a ways a way. And this is the way she repaid him for all that he did for her.

My brothers all shared the same thought as me. We rushed to the store to tell Max the truth. He wouldn't look at us until we got in his face and forced him to listen.

"You're not supposed to be in here, David," Max said without looking at me.

I sighed and leaned in to whisper. "Max, you have to come with us right now."

"What?" he asked stepping back.

"You need to come with us to the beach now. It's important that you see this."

I don't know what his thoughts were. He probably figured it was some kind of trickery on our part, but I knew he wouldn't believe me unless he saw her with his own eyes.

We basically dragged Max down to the beach and hid him behind the pier.

"What's this about?" he asked.

I pointed to the woman he was intended on marrying in just a few days. At first he must've thought she was using her body to distract her prey. But as time rolled on he finally could see the truth that he hid from himself for so long. His eyes couldn't bear the sight. She had her mouth and hands all over this strange mortal. She wore that devil red dress so short that it barely passed as clothing. She's disgusting, not worthy of bearing our name or the title of "queen."

I don't know how bad Max had been hurt, but the pain in his eyes was obvious.

Max broke away from us and stormed over to Greta. I couldn't help but smirk when I thought of how he was going to rip the two of them to shreds. At least that's what I would've done. Instead Max kept his vampiric form hidden. They exchanged a couple of shouts and Max told her straight up that he wasn't going to have anymore and broke off their engagement.

It was finished.

They exchanged words. That bitch looked frightened, and she should be as she was nowhere near as powerful as the vampire king of Santa Carla. I'm over half a century old and my power is only a fraction of his. I smirked hoping that Max would give her a taste of that power. I wanted him to show her the consequences of her harlotry. I wanted to see that blood.

"Max, give me another chance!" cried the whore.

Max trembled. My anger intensified as I thought of him giving into that woman's demands. She had already manipulated him enough. He'd be a fool if he took her back. The man I consider my father looked back at me for advice. For once he chose to listen to my opinion. He must've just realized that I'd been right all along. I closed my eyes and shook my head. Max turned back to her and voiced to her what my brothers and I unanimously felt. He left her sobbing on the beach in the company of the startled, yet lucky to still be alive, human.

Max walked back towards us and stopped when he reached us. Though I was glad he broke it off with her, my anger had yet to subside. I wanted to disembowel that girl.

"Just give the word," I whispered when I noticed Max standing barely ten feet from us, his face contorted with mixed feelings. I know he was hurt and embarrassed to say the least. The fact was, for some unknown reason, it hurt us as well. All he had to do was tell us what he wanted done and we would take pleasure in making her last moments on earth full of pain.

Max never gave us an answer. I took that as a granted permission to carry out our own punishment towards the whore. He headed back for the store, still too much in love with her to properly deal with her crimes. Betrayal among our own kind cannot be tolerated—its penalty is death.

"Alright, boys," I said to the others. "Looks like it's in our hands now."

The next night we waited until Greta left her house. No doubt she was headed back to the store to beg Max for forgiveness. That liar probably already knew how to put on a fake apologetic face. It's what I hated most about her. She's sin incarnate, and for a vampire to say that about another—her sordid being had no place in this world.

She never saw it coming. The three of us waited until she reached a desolate location out by the forest. Paul couldn't keep from laughing and that caught Greta's attention. She looked around, switching into her vampire form. Either she's stupid, or Max neglected to inform her of when she should use that form, but it didn't matter. If that's how she wanted to die, it was alright with us.

Suddenly we pounced and began to claw at her, letting every ounce of blood fall. I took my time, enjoying every scream. I saw her eyes pleading for mercy. I hated those eyes from the first time I saw them. At that moment I had to make sure I'd never see those eyes again. I licked my lips as I gestured for the other two to give me some room. Greta's bloody form fell into the grass, staining it with her foul, silver essence. Fangs bared, I reared back my arm then forced my index and middle claw into those squalid eyes. Her screams thrilled my dead blood. It held the beauty of a thousand symphonies. Her eyeballs condensing to liquid beneath my fingers was too lovely a sight. I paused to capture that moment to remember for the rest of eternity.

The three of us quickly disposed of what was left of her shredded body then made our way back to the cave to change our clothes before heading out for our bit of fun. Before we could reach the cave we were stopped by those unmistakable headlights. I signaled to the other two and we turned to meet Max's car. He stared at us, horrified at the state of the blood of our own kind proudly displayed across our garments. He parked in the middle of the street and called our names.

He stared at me. "What did you do?"

"She won't hurt you again," I said. "I give you my word."

I then nodded for the others to follow me. They did not hesitate to obey my orders. Max could've asked for more, but I'm sure he got the picture. None of us, including Max, ever mentioned Greta's name again.

It was a long time afterwards that Max felt he found someone else that could be his true love. I was skeptic at first, after dealing with that slut Greta, I didn't want to know what he found this time. Two decades had passed and honesty it was a pleasant feeling to see him looking so happy again. During that twenty year period we acquired another by the name of Marco. He was a fun guy, small, and rather obedient. However I have to give credit to that misfortunate event that occurred almost two years ago when Marco got the bright idea to abandon the pack and run away. He nearly succeeded in bringing the world's attention to our existence. Thankfully we managed to avoid that one. *

As for this Lucy, I met her about two weeks ago. I don't count our first actual meeting, because we exchanged no words when I first saw her talking to Max about a job at his store. From what I saw she didn't seem too bad. She was an older woman, had a nice smile, and from her interactions with children seemed very maternal. She was a perfect picture of Max's type. Still, I wanted to be sure that this woman could be trusted so the guys and I decided to have a little fun.

It was the following evening when we approached Lucy as she left the store after finishing her shift. We played a harmless prank on her by riding circles around her person while screaming and hollering. She smiled at us at first, but the closer and louder we became, showing no signs of leaving, she began to get nervous. It was fun to watch her shiver. We were too wrapped up in our game that we didn't see Max show up. I noticed him step out of his car so I gave the signal for us to part. From what I observed upon leaving, she seemed relieved to be by Max's side. Her eyes appeared warm and delightful, so I suppose she's not too bad. **

Max, however, was not pleased with us that night. He called me over and warned us never to harass Lucy again. I complied to his orders, assuring him it was just for sport, but I don't think he believed me. When I asked him what was so special about her he told me he had fallen for her. I reminded him that they only recently met, but he was already too deep in love with her. He rarely asked me my opinions when it came to his personal life, but I warned him anyway that he shouldn't move too fast with her. He chose not to listen to me. Perhaps he forgot what happened last time he ignored my premonitions, but I sincerely hoped the results would be in his favor this time.

He then assigned me the task of turning Lucy's eldest son, Michael, into one of us. I took pleasure in doing so. It had been a while since we had a new friend, so I thought it could be fun to bring a new guy into the group. The other boys were just as excited. So was my girlfriend, Star. I put her up to the challenge of seducing him. It was so cliché how easily he fell into our trap. That's what makes mortal tragedies so hilarious to me. I lured him into a motorcycle race in which I almost caused the ridiculous mortal to drive off the cliff. I laughed. I couldn't help it, mortals are too amusing. Michael then punched me in the face while shouting his angers as humans often do. It didn't hurt, but it still amused me that mortals have some fight in them. I invited him to join us in the cave where we had a bit more harmless fun with him. Star was not amused, but being half-human herself, one can't expect much from her.

After spending some time with Michael over the next few nights I came to like him. Paul did too. Marco was indifferent to the matter. I don't think Dwayne was too fond of him, in fact I actually heard him speak to Marco about it, saying he didn't trust something about Michael. I don't know what to think about that, Dwayne's usually spot on with his gut feelings, almost as accurate as myself. I'll have to have a discussion with him about that later. If Dwayne feels strongly about that (and being an emotional telepath, I most certainly trust his judgment), I should hear his reasons. ***

Still, I decided to give Michael a chance.

In fact we were on our way to meet him when it happened. I knew it was just a matter of time before the changes affected him and he came to us for answers. Michael's a bit of a wuss now, but in time he'll be as strong as us.

We had just finished feeding and stood on the second-level balcony above the beach watching the nightly entertainment. Several drunks held a bonfire on the beach with their heavy metal blasting from the speakers and danced around like mortal idiots often do. With it being a Tuesday night the boardwalk set off fireworks for the crowd to watch. The other boys loved the fireworks for unexplained reasons. I suppose it was something they barely remembered from their days as humans. It didn't matter much to me, but the array of lights was sometimes beautiful to watch. Whenever Star was with us she would cuddle up against me and tell me repeatedly how gorgeous they were. Star still is a mortal, so mortal beauty standards still mean something to her.

Thankfully Star was not with us earlier. A weak spell fell over her which led to her decision to stay in that night. I told her it's because she needs blood, but won't make her first kill. Since she still has her human side it's difficult for her to break through. All she needs to do is take that first bite and it'll all be over.

The fireworks made the perfect distraction. Half the people around were drunk, so no one noticed when the youngest of my band screamed out for help in the midst of an explosion of blue. I just happened to glance back in between the next set of lights to find one of my group missing.

"Where's Marco?" I asked the other two. After what happened two years ago, I find myself extremely protective over my youngest brother. The other two have similar feelings.

"David! Help me!" I heard my brother scream.

I jumped up and leaned over the balcony where I witnessed two men cornering him. They sneaky bastards must've grabbed him and threw him to the ground while our backs were turned. Marco's right arm appeared to be damaged. It's just like these creeps to go after the smallest first.

The older of the two seemed to be in his mid-thirties while the younger one had to be at least twenty-eight. They both wore jeans and leather jackets, one clenching a sharpened stake. The older one grabbed Marco and twisted his arms behind his back, thrusting his chest forward. The younger one readied the stake above my brother's heart. The younger one muttered something about having witnessed us feeding and having been sent to deal with the vampire problem.

Marco struggled and kicked to no avail. The one holding the stake backhanded him in the face. Marco screamed and that's when everything went red for me. I jumped down, slinging sand in the eyes of the man with the stake. I turned around and kicked the one who held Marco captive in the shins. He dropped Marco in time for me to kick him in the chin. Dwayne grabbed the smaller of the two by the hair and slung him up against the balcony, making it shake. Everyone standing up there began to scream.

Paul cradled Marco in his arms, massaging his sore arm. I gave Paul the signal that we should move away from the prying eyes of mortals. The slayers agreed to our terms, for we did not want to get discovered, and they did not want any human casualties. Marco regained his bearings and the four of us moved to a secluded location down the ways, far from the festivities of the boardwalk.

For the longest time we engaged in a staring contest. It was time to survey our opponents. There were five, ranging in size and strength. One was a female with red hair tied into a ponytail, yet the grotesque scar across her face and narrowed eyes showed that she was just as fierce as the others. No surprise there as female vampires were more feared than the male ones, for they were considered more brutal than us. The two who attacked Marco, both were dressed in leather, the larger, older one had shaggy, dark hair and the other styled his hair in black spikes. They appeared to be related. The one next to him had dark skin and giant muscles busting through his denim vest. A large scar rested under his eye. The last was a frail one, obviously the weakest (physically) of the group, but gathering from the crossbow in his hand, he had experience with artillery. Blonde curls, similar to Marco's, cascaded down his pale face.

"How do you want to do this?" I asked.

"It doesn't matter to me," the leader stated. "Each of us are willing to die as long as each of you have met your end tonight."

That one was mine. I didn't care who the others chose to fight, but this one's attitude fascinated me. It would be most ironic to see him eat those words while I spilt his blood in the sand.

We split up. The lead slayer launched at me. I caught his fist in my hold and twisted his arm. I heard the grunts from him as his strong arm was bent to a painful angle. He kicked me in the knee, causing me to drop. He nursed his sore wrist, his glare solely on me. His hands went to his pockets to reveal silver stakes. I smirked, this would be fun. Although I was careful as the last time I met with someone with this kind of experience mine and Marco's lives were almost lost. Max warned us not to fight with a trained vampire assasin of that caliber again, but we had been itching for some excitement for some time. It was destined for our paths to cross tonight.

The blades sliced, each time barely missing me. The slayer kneed me in the stomach then elbowed me beneath the eye. I growled, my true form slipping through. These humans already knew what I was and would not make it out of here alive, so there's no reason they can't see what they're up against. He stepped backwards, neither surprised nor afraid.

I launched forward, my claws readying to strike. He ducked in time, rolling beneath my legs. He threw a blade which came closs to grazing my face. I stopped suddenly, landing in a kneeling position. That scent was too familiar-holy water. I slightly wobbled as I lifted myself to a standing position. If those were the kind of weapons these slayers were using, I had to be more careful.

We readied for a second round when I heard a cry from behind me. We both turned to see Paul falling. The smallest of the group had shot two wooden stakes from his crossbow, one pinning Paul's arm to the ground, the ohter immobilizing his leg. I abandonned my fight, rushing to my brother's aid. The armed slayer aimed the crossbow for me. I loudly cursed myself for flying in the dead center of his shot. With one eye closed he released the trigger, the stake impaling me. Fortunately I moved in time to avoid the blow to the heart. I grasped the stake and tossed it to the ground.

My yellow eyes reddening I tackled the slayer, knocking the crossbow from his hold. I punched him twice in the face. I readied myself for the kill when a sharp pain exploded in my side and I fell over. The female of their group stood over me, her legs stradling my fallen body. She held a steel spear in her grasp. She lifted her arms above her head and forced the weapon down upon me. Two firm hands grabbed her inches before she made the kill. I looked up and her head snapped back to see the glowing eyes of the dark-haired vampire. She struggled in his grasp before bending and kicking him in the kneecap. I rolled away from her then jumped to my feet. As she busied herself with Dwayne I extended my claw and gave Dwayne a nod which signaled him to back away. The girl turned in time for my hand to impale her abdomen all the way through. She let out a gasping cry. Blood poured down my arm. I kicked her off, her fractured body falling at my feet. She curled in herself, painfully gasping for oxygen. Crimson stained what once was soft, white sand.

Dwayne turned to the smallest slayer. Without his weapons he was rendered useless. I almost pitied the defenseless mortal as he faced the strongest of my brothers. Dwayne liked to hide his strength, but as I've seen on many occassions, when emotionally motivated he was the one to be most feared, other than myself. Dwayne's fangs ripped out the slayer's throat. Another corpse littered the beach, painting the serene scene with a comforting shade of red.

Two down, only three left. With the slayers outnumbered the rest should not have been much of a problem. Unfortunately we underestimated their true power. The spiky-haired slayer cornered a pinned Paul. He hovered over him, smirking at what was soon to be his victim. It concerned me when I noticed that Paul was not responsive to the oncoming danger. That's when I noticed that he was out cold. Whatever managed to render him uncosncious had to be somehow related to those stakes. The blade that the leader sent my way was laced with holy water, so there's no doubt that those stakes were drenched in some sort of vampire poison.

As the human readied to end Paul's life, the smallest vampire jumped into action. Marco kicked him in the stomach then delivered a round-house kick to the slayer's chin. His jaw somewhat cracked, but not enough to cause any real damage.

Marco sent another kick in the human's direction, the blow hitting him directly in the knees. The slayer turned as he stumbled. He had no intentions of going down alone as he positioned himself so that he would fall atop of Marco, the stake ready to pierce skin. The human slammed down on top of Marco knocking the wind out of my brother. My dark heart skipped. Marco gnashed his teeth then squirmed until he had enough of room to kick and knock the man away. Unfortunately Marco was unable to make it out without receiving a scrape along his neck with the stake.

Marco hopped up, his fists clenched and fangs bared.

I surveyed the scene to see Dwayne kick the bulky slayer attacking him. I never saw the injuries Dwayne attained, but there was a deep gash in his arm and one in the leg. The injuries had no doubt slowed him down. He hobbled over to where Paul waited with a stake in his arm. Without warning, Dwayne yanked the stake from his younger brother's limb. Fortunately Paul was out for that, for I have heard that removing a stake from a still conscious vampires is one of the worst pains our kind can face. While Dwayne's back was turned the bulky slayer hurried over to Dwayne. These humans are fast, almost as fast as that slayer Vincent two years ago. In his condition Dwayne could not defend himself and Paul.

Marco could hold his own against the one facing him; from my own fight with Marco, I know that he is skilled. I hurried over to where the assailant prepared an attack on my brothers. I grabbed the silver sword from his arm and twisted until the pain forced him to release. I tossed the weapon aside then bashed him in the nose. He covered his face with his hands as the delicious scent wafted through the air. I had to control my urges as did Dwayne.

I took a closer look at them to realize that Dwayne's strength was slowly fading. His eyes were drooped, and his face pale. He appeared to be suppressing the urge to vomit. No doubt those were the effects of holy water. It frightened me to think of how much was injected into him and how close it was to his heart.

The slayer removed his hands from his face and I realized that now was the time for us to escape, or we would never have another chance. I managed to help up Dwayne and tossed Paul over my shoulders. The latter groaned as he stood. Paul has the crappiest luck, out of the four he has already been staked three times and somehow managed to survive.

The lead slayer hurried to his relative when he heard the younger man's cry. He grasped a stake and launched himself at Marco. Marco readied himself for an attack. I saw the grip the human had on the stake. The foolish youngling never would have survived. I sped through the air, somehow evading the eyes of the onlookers (thank goodness most were drunk out of their minds or stoned), and grabbed Marco before the stake landed in his chest, and kicked the slayer in his unexposed torso, knocking him back three feet. Marco released a sigh of relief and verbal gratitude when we landed in the sand. I patted his back then signaled for the four of us to leave.

"Paul," Marco whimpered as he looked upon his unconscious best friend. It pained me to hear that voice.

"We have to get out of here now," I said. I looked at Dwayne, "Will you be able to move on your own."

Dwayne nodded, "I can't run, but it won't hurt me to fly."

I glanced back at where the slayers mounted their backs. I growled as I heard a crowd heading our way. The last thing we needed were spectators and possible witnesses. I cursed out loud. Not only would we not have time to hide the bodies, it was too risky to take to the sky until we made it a little further.

"We can't take them on by ourselves," I said hurriedly. I looked over at the youngest vampire and ordered, "Marco, carry Dwayne. Dwayne, do not argue," I spat, hushing him before he had a chance to protest. I returned my attention to Marco and said, "We need to get to Max's store. If anyone can help it's him."

Marco obeyed my every word. We ran, both Marco and myself carrying an extra life, until we reached a secluded area. I gave my brother a nod and we leapt into the air, zipping to the back entrance of Max's store.

The memories of the night when Marco disappeared surfaced. That was the same location we were instructed to wait until he snuck out to discuss Marco's absence with us. It was not a pleasant night for any of us. One look at Marco showed me how much he had changed.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Marco asked, helping Dwayne off of his back. Dwayne held back a wince as his injured leg met the concrete.

I placed the unconscious Paul in a patch of dirt and grass behind a conveniently large bush. I instructed Dwayne and Marco to wait there while I requested Max's help. I am unaware of what Max will do. 'Til this day I have yet to see the extent of my father's strength. In all honesty, I'm somewhat afraid to witness it.

"Keep them safe," I said to Marco. "Try not to make any noise. If the slayers find you, do your best against them. I know you're a great fighter." The memory of the pain he inflicted upon me during our battle two years ago resurfaced. Yes, I could trust my brothers in the hands of Marco.

Marco grinned that cheeky smirk that rivaled even mine. He nodded in agreement, giving me the cue to head towards the front of the store. In hindsight I realized that I probably should've made it look more natural than running inside. For once my emotions seized my rationality and I found myself running towards the counter.

"Is Max here?" I asked short of breath. "I need to talk to him now."

That was when I noticed that the woman I spoke with was Lucy, the same woman Max intended to make his wife—our mother. She looked at me with that maternal concern that I know was what attracted Max to her in the first place. She gave me those kind eyes a motherly woman would to a child. She probably views me as a kid, just like she does her little Michael.

"Are you okay?" she asked me with a concerned expression on her face. That must be the look of a worried mother that attracted Max to this human. In a tone filled with sympathy she added, "Do you need anything?"

Do her eyes fail her? Did she not just watch me come into the store with haste? Obviously there's an emergency here. At the moment I could not keep myself from thinking if this idiot is really the woman of Max's infatuation. He yearns for a moron with a sweet smile and her "let me help you" persona. A mother to his children.

I keep myself from growling in her face, at the moment it's not a caring mother we need, but someone strong enough to take down these slayers. Were it one, Marco and I could handle it, but three with two injured brothers, Marco and I cannot both fight them and protect the injured. We know the rules about contacting Max in his place of business, but this time we have no choice.

Now I have to deal with this ridiculous human woman. "Yes!" I shouted. "I need to talk to Max! Did you not just hear me, you insignificant disgrace of humanity?"

"David!" barked the voice of my father. I looked up at the angry face of the man who gave me my life and could easily take it away if he wanted. He gave that woman his most sincere apologetic face. I cringed at the thought that he was seriously considering this human's feelings. What vampire would seriously care of the well-being of some mortal woman? Even if she is the one he wishes for. "I'm sorry, Lucy," he spoke sweetly to her. His face returned to anger as he glared at me. "I've taught you better manners than that. Now apologize."

What? He thinks that I'm going to apologize to that human? Not on my life. His glare pressed harder. He made it clear that he would not listen to what I had to say until I fulfilled his demands. I sighed. For my brothers' safety I quickly apologized to the mortal then returned my attention to Max.

"I've told you about coming in here," Max warned.

"But this is important!" I interjected. I had to interrupt for the sake of Marco and Paul. Max could go on for days with his lectures, and time being a luxury we don't have, I needed to tell him about the slayers _now_.

Max looked to Lucy then back at me, then back to his love interest. He must have heard the urgency in my voice. "Excuse me, Lucy," he said then put his hand on my shoulder as he pulled me away from her and Diana's prying ears.

The two of them began to whisper about us. It took what strength I had left to keep from biting their heads off. It was the removal of Max's hand on my shoulder that brought my eyes back to his worried face.

"What happened?" he asked with concern in his voice.

"Max, please, you gotta' help us," I pleaded. I didn't know how to tell him that two of his children were about to die right outside his store at the hands of three trained murderers. He was the only one who could save them, the same way he saved me that fateful night of the earthquake.

"David," he interrupted.

"You know I wouldn't bother you if I didn't need it," I said. I had to clear the air. I didn't want him to think we were weak, 'cause we're not. We don't usually need his help. But this time it was different. They caught us off guard and wounded two of us. We rely on each other and with half the pack injured against three trained slayers, we don't stand much of a chance. Not to mention I will be distracted with the well-being of my injured brothers. Marco tried to hide it, but his minor injury during that fight has yet to heal.

"David, slow down," Max demanded.

"Max, they almost killed us," I replied.

"Who?"

I didn't hear his question. My mind was still fixed on the two invalids outside. "They seriously injured Paul and Dwayne. They came this close to killing them." I pinched my thumb and index finger together to show just how close they were to actually dying. It was by pure luck that Marco was able to fend them off for Paul's sake. "I tried to keep them from…but they were too fast."

I couldn't take my own weakness anymore. They almost died and there was nothing I could do about it. There was no way I'd ever able to forgive myself if they died. I should've been more aware when they captured Marco. I'm the one who was supposed to be watching out for the younger ones. And I failed them.

"Dwayne and Paul, where are they?" Max asked quickly. "Are they okay?"

"Marco's looking out for them," I explained. I just didn't tell him where they were. "These guys are quick and have top-notch vampire-killing weapons." I paused, thinking about that dagger that was laced in poison. "They stabbed Dwayne with a poisoned blade—I think it was blessed water," I told Max.

Max's nose and forehead wrinkled. "Are you talking about those two vampire-hunting children?"

I hissed as I pictured those stupid Frog brothers. They were nothing. In fact if it were not for mere amusement of what pathetic scheme they tried against people they assumed to be our kind, we would've done away with them long ago. However, with them having no real experience in the slaying field, it would be a great dishonor to our entire to dispose of them. Believe it or not, even vampires have rules about murdering humans outside of food or defense.

"No, these are men," I replied. He had to know the truth of how strong these slayers were. "Men trained to kill vampires, sent here to do that job." I paused and thought again about the suffering the others were going through at that very moment. "And almost succeeded."

"And you all escaped?" Max asked. "Alive?"

He was worried for sure and had every reason to be. The rumor of vampires in Santa Carla must have traveled far to send those two to deal with us.

"Barely," I replied remembering again just how close they came to destroying Paul. I looked Max directly in the eyes. "Max, there's no way Marco and I can take them on by ourselves." They must have known that and planned to destroy us one at a time. That's probably why they went after Marco first, to test out the weakest. If I didn't notice Marco was gone, we'd probably all be dead right now. "We killed two, but the other three are still strong and in pursuit. Marco and I grabbed the other two and took off, but they chased us. We couldn't go back to the cave, they'd follow us."

I couldn't put them in worse danger.

"They followed you?" Max asked with a hint of anger in his voice.

As I looked up I saw Max's hand approaching me. His palm slapped me in the face. My eyes widened as my hand reached up to touch where he struck me. It didn't hurt, but I had to see if it really happened. Max never hit me before and I never believed he would have without reason.

"So you came here?" Max shouted.

I gasped as I realized what I did. I can't believe I was so stupid to lead the slayers straight to our leader. It had to have been their plan along. My stomach coiled as the thought of the slayers discovering my brothers' whereabouts right outside the store. There's no way they can fight them off right now. Even with Marco at his peak he can't take on the both of them. Dwayne and Paul cannot defend themselves in a fight right now. Marco would fight to the death to keep them alive, a gesture only in vain against three trained slayers. One was difficult enough, but three.

"David, I'm sorry," Max blurted. "I didn't mean to hit you."

"What are we going to do?" I asked suddenly. Max had no need to apologize. I deserved it for being stupid enough to lead them here.

Max reached into his pocket and pulled out the keys. They were spare keys to his house. He pulled one off the ring and handed it to me.

"I want you boys to go home," Max said handing me the key. "Not to the cave, to my house." I was shocked. Ever since we took an interest in destructive behavior, Max never allowed us entrance into his house. I suppose deep down he still does care for us. "You four are to stay in there until tomorrow night."

I nodded and understood. As long as I had the key Thorn would not attack us, but he would attack anyone else who dared try to enter Max's home. I only hoped we could get there before the slayers found us. We were lucky the first time, but in our current condition we would lose for sure. I headed for the door.

"David!" Max called. I turned around to look at him, hoping he didn't change his mind. "Don't make any noise. And don't touch anything when you get there."

I nodded. None of us would dare disrespect Max tonight, not after what he did for us. I took one last look at Lucy. She had an expression of worry on her face. Perhaps she isn't as bad as I thought she was. She seemed truly concerned about four boys that she didn't know. Maybe I was too quick to judge her. If this is truly what will make Max happy, then I will not interfere.

I left in the opposite direction that I entered in hopes to avoid the men after us. I heard the clanking of those familiar boots to see two of our pursuers stepping at the entrance of Max's video store. Max could handle these two, yet I was most concerned of the whereabouts of the third member of their party.

I heard a noise in the vicinity of where I left Marco to tend to the other two. I rushed at light speed just in time to see Marco kick the missing slayer in the stomach. I stopped and watched as Marco slid behind his opponent and placed a hand on either side of the man's face. In one quick motion a loud snap echoed into the darkness. I heard Marco's twisted cackle as he lifted the body. He heard me approaching and turned, displaying his true eyes.

Marco let out a sigh of relief, "I thought you were the others," he said, adjusting the weight on his shoulders.

I smirked. "Don't worry about them, they'll meet their end at Max's hands," I tell him.

Marco smiled. "Is he really that powerful?" the youngest asked.

I nodded. It's true, Marco had never seen Max in action. Dwayne and I are the only ones who have lived to see Max's true power. It still frightens me to know I barely add up to three percent of what he can do. Maybe someday I'll be worthy enough to have half of Max's power. Until then it's good to know that he'll protect his family.

"Come, we have to get the two of them to Max's house," I instructed.

Marco's mouth fell open. "I thought we weren't allowed there."

"This is an emergency," I replied. "Besides, Max has an elixir that will cure Dwayne of the poison, if my hunches are correct." I know the dangers of giving a vampire the wrong potion, but he won't make it 'til sunrise if I don't do anything. It's times like these I wish Douglas was still alive.

"What do I do with him?" Marco asked pointing to the stiff over his shoulder.

"You broke his neck and didn't penetrate the flesh, correct?" I asked as I strode towards the wounded. Marco nodded. "Drop him from the top story of a building—it will look like an accident."

A grin flashes across Marco's face. He's truly wicked—the other two believe his sadistic ways rival my own. I'm not too sure about that, but he is the more brutal of my brothers.

A collective scream ringing in the distance informed me that Marco carried out his task. In a flash the youngest vampire was right behind me. I slung Dwayne over my shoulder and Marco followed with Paul. We hurried to the spot where we normally parked our bikes. Max was kind enough to allow us to lodge in his house for the night, we could not risk his secret by flying to his residency. We purposely traveled by the crime scene just to take one last look at the remains of what was once the great slayer. Unfortunately with five dead, I believe this is only the beginning of the slayers' arrival in Santa Carla. We are going to have to be much more careful in the future.

As we approached Max's house I jumped down to unlock the gate. Paul was already feeling better and assured me he could walk to the house on his own. Marco, however, still felt weak. He needed blood as soon as possible. Luckily I knew where Max kept the emergency bottle stashed. He instructed me not to touch anything, but in a time of emergency he would override the rule.

Thorn ran up to us and growled. I growled back and told him to back off. He must have understood the emergency and let us pass. I unlocked the door and let the other three go in front of me. Marco carried Paul inside and gently sat him down on the floor. Marco then limped over to me, grasping onto the doorframe for a few seconds hoping I would not notice. His leg should be back to normal by morning.

I rushed off to the kitchen and opened the last cabinet near the wall. I pushed away the props used to make his home appear more human and clicked the switch that revealed a hidden door. Several vials, thankfully labeled, were in full view. I snatched the one that would heal my two brothers of the poison. After that I grabbed a cold bottle of A positive from the fridge. I returned to the boys and tossed the blood to Marco who gulped down half the contents.

"What's that?" Marco asked as he placed the bottle down on the table.

"Medicine," I answered as I sat down beside my sick brother. I laid Dwayne's head on my lap and tilted his head back. His eyes slightly opened and he groaned. "Come on, open up," I said. He obeyed as I poured a few drops into his mouth. He quickly swallowed before drifting back to sleep. I then did the same with Paul, only he didn't wake up.

"You should have some too," I said to Marco, handing him the rest.

Marco contemplated for a few seconds before giving in. He accepted the pewter vial from my hand and downed the remaining liquid. He made face at the taste then placed the glass vial down on the table.

"It's been a long day, so you should probably get some rest," I said to him.

Marco only nodded in response. I headed to the closet to grab some blankets for my brothers. I quickly draped one over Dwayne who slept peacefully on one of the couches and one on Paul who slept on the other. By his breathing he seemed to be in pain. I only hoped that the potion would cure them by tomorrow night. They're too strong to meet their end this way.

I tossed a blanket to Marco who was making his bed on the floor. That's one good thing about Max's house, he had it designed so that there were minimal windows to avoid any sunlight. The den, which doubled as a library, was a favorite place of his, so there were no windows, and the thick walls kept any sunlight from penetrating through. We would be safe here for the day.

"Do you think we'll see them again?" Marco asked in a tone I rarely ever heard from him as he covered himself with a fleece blanket.

I looked over at the boy to find him staring down at his feet. "No," I replied. "Max got rid of them." I smiled as I thought to myself of how Max would torture them for what they tried to do to us. If there was one thing he made clear it was that he wanted no one messing with his family. It's a trait we all shared.

"We owe him alot," Marco said, his eyes meeting mine.

I nodded. Max always came through for us when we needed it. It's the real reason we respect him and part of why I kept his identity a secret from everyone, including Michael and even Star. I knew I couldn't trust her with that news, she'd accidentally blab it to him. I somewhat don't trust that she's entirely faithful to me either. I saw the way she looked at Michael. It's only a matter of time before he's in her bed. I don't really care too much for her anymore, but I feel I still have to look out for her.

"Good morning, David," Marco said as he curled up on the floor.

"Good morning," I said in reply as I made my way to the other end of the floor. It would be a while before I found sleep, but it would be nice to rest after tonight's events.

I looked over at the other boys. Dwayne had already fallen asleep and Marco was on his way. Paul, having yet to stir, will most likely wake before dusk with many questions of how we ended up in Max's house. I'll be explaining much the next evening. I decided to lay flat on my back and stare up at the ceiling. Thorn came over and laid down beside me. He actually let me pet his fur. I never thought that dog would let anyone other than Max touch him. I had to keep awake until Max returned. I couldn't fall asleep, someone had to keep a lookout. I knew no one would dare harm us here, but for my own sake I had to keep watch.

I dozed off sometime within the four hours, awakening at the sudden movement of the dog. I looked up to find Max walking in. He smiled at me and asked with his eyes how the others were feeling. I assured him with a nod that they were doing better. He smiled again and moved on to his bedroom.

"Hey, Max," I whispered. He turned to me and motioned for me to remain where I was. He joined me in the den, standing in the doorway. "Are they dead?" I asked.

He gave me a creepy smile, myself giving one in return. He then returned to his quest for bed as the signs of fatigue were obvious on his face. The sun would be rising before long. Max protected us tonight, but it's what we do in this family.

I laughed at myself. family is probably the weirdest by far, but I don't think I mind them anymore, not one bit.

* * *

*This is a reference to my story Runaway.

** This is a reference to a deleted scene from the movie where the guys circle Lucy on their motorcycles after she leaves the shop. Max then shows up and David signals them to leave.

*** In my stories I gave Dwayne the ability to feel people's emotions. Seeing as how he is the silent member of the pack, I thought it would be fun for him to just listen to people's heart rhythms to understand what they are feeling.

Well that's it for David's point-of-view. I tried to grasp his intelligent/sarcastic character in this chapter. Let me know what you think. The next chapter will consist of Marco's telling of the story.

Not related to the story, but this is the longest chapter I've ever written for any story. It's even longer than a majority of my oneshots.

Until next time. Hope you enjoyed the story!


	4. Marco

I do not own The Lost Boys. If I did the sequels never would've been made.

Hello, everyone. It's been almost two years since this story has been updated. I thank everyone who has been with this story from the beginning. The first three chapters have been rewritten for two reasons:

1) The writing was horrible which required major editing.

2) I decided to make this story a part of the Santa Carla Chronicles, so the chapters fit better with the first three (possibly four if I write that other one) stories in the series.

Anyway, I hope you all enjoy the improvements to this story. The plot of chapter three is the only one that has had major changes. I know many of you wanted this chapter told through the perspective of Paul, but because of a major change in the last chapter and Paul is unconscious for most of it, it would only work through Marco's point of view. Writing a first person narrative through Marco's perspective was quite a challenge, but hopefully it worked and you all like the final chapter.

There are references to my stories _The Only Way_, _Curtis_, and _Runaway_ (especially the last one) in this chapter. It's not essential that you read those stories first to enjoy this one, but it might help to fill you in on a few of the references.

Thank you to all my readers. A special thanks to Cupid'sAddiction, Ghostwriter, Nightcrawlerlover, and The Clown That Smiles for reviewing the last chapter. I much appreciate all your reviews.

Warnings: This chapter is very violent, moreso than the last one, and there are two swear words.

On with the final chapter from Marco's POV:

* * *

It's been a little under three years since I began my life as a vampire. Don't let my age fool you, Paul has told me that next to our leader, I'm the most brutal of the bunch. Naturally I accepted this as a compliment.

Believe it or not there was a time when I was the most feared vampire in Santa Carla. Of course they thought I was just a regular mass murderer. Once again, you shouldn't let my appearance fool you. I know I look small and innocent, but that's just a mask. When the fangs are bared, I don't stop until my prey is nothing but a mangled mess of flesh and blood (what little I don't consume). David has called me a glutton before, I don't deny it. What good is catching the prey if they don't admit with their dying thoughts that the creature above them is the true superior being?

Everyone has their own methods for hunting. Paul is quick and sloppy, the main reason David forces him to wear dark colored shirts if we dine before beginning our nightly adventures on the boardwalk. Occasionally if he stalks a pretty girl he'll take her off to have a little fun before killing her. Paul is always good about disposing the bodies, so David allows him to have his fun.

Dwayne waits for his prey to come to him. Supposedly vampires can hypnotize a human of the opposite sex to abandon all reason and safety and come their way. Dwayne has ten times the amount of any normal vampire since his charm can allure any girl off the boardwalk. They flock to him like he's a millionaire who's seeking a wife. Depending on the nature of his victim he'll decide on how painful to make their deaths. I can't help but grin when those spoiled girls with awful attitudes skip up to him; on those nights I stay by to watch because it's going to be bloody.

My style is similar to Dwayne's in that we both use our charm to lure our prey. We differ by one detail: he gives his victims a chance at a quick kill, and I don't. I long to savor each moment of those mortals' dying moments. It's too beautiful a performance and always unpredictable. Each person dies a different way and I desire to see each one through.

Everybody thinks I'm so innocent. It's too amusing to watch their faces change when they realize just how much of a sadist I am. If given enough time in a secluded area I can be sure the slaughter will be lovely. When I was a human I dreamt of being an artist. Sketching, painting, fashion design, you name it I tried it. Even though I abandoned my humanity long ago, I still am artist who likes to paint my subjects. The bland skin tones always require a lovely scarlet shade to complete the work.

Then there's David. His brutality makes me look clement. I don't just mean that he's physically brutal, which I know the extent of his viciousness from when we fought a few years ago. (1) The bruises healed within a few hours, but the memory of the pain will always remain. I'm just lucky that he granted me mercy when he had the authority to end me as harshly as he does his victims.

No, it's not the amount of bloodshed that determines how ruthless a vampire can be. David wins that contest too, hands down, but he operates on another level. He's the true reason people nowadays still fear us. David attacks the human's mind the second he selects his meal. He likes the chase, takes it slow to prolong his amusement and their fear. He enjoys watching the humans squirm and struggle as they try their best to escape him. He gives them that moment of peace when they believe they've found that escape then he strikes and takes pleasure in his well-earned kill. (2)

That's one of the reasons I admire David. Paul is still my closest friend and I would slay all others and myself before I let anything happen to Paul. But David is so deserving of my respect. A few years ago I was foolish and wanted to escape and overthrow him. That plan didn't go as well as I hoped which caused my brothers a lot of suffering. David painfully made me aware of my mistakes then gave me a second chance when he was bound by the honor code to kill me right there. He spared my life and for that I owe him my adoration. (3)

That was how the night began. The previous night we were not allowed enough time to feast since we spent the majority of the night teasing our newest brother. It feels good to not have to be the youngest any longer. Once Michael is a part of the family I will have seniority over him. Of course to many outsiders he will still look older than me. That's the one downside to never aging.

After the joke we played on Michael we made a visit at Max's house. He wanted to speak to David about the transformation process with Michael. Paul got the bright idea to play around with Max in a similar manner that we did with Michael. It's safe to say that Max was not amused. Once again he warned us not to step anywhere near his store.

I rolled my eyes. We've heard that warning so many times, but we never heed to it. It's not like anyone will ever make the connection to us. When I disappeared for two weeks he talked to David and I'm sure someone from the store noticed. If Max really wanted to get rid of any evidence that he knew us he should have done away with that stupid girl from her store. Paul liked her, but Paul likes everyone. I assumed he only kept her around for that reason. It's probably good for her, because if anyone's ever fired from Max's store, they're fired from life.

David agreed to his terms. Though I figured we would end up breaking them within a week.

So the night began with dinner. Me and Paul were famished so we drained the entirety of a human apiece. It was too fulfilling. It didn't take too much longer for David and Dwayne to finish. They were just as hungry as me and Paul. We tossed the bodies into a fire and watched as their corpses disintegrated into a collective pile of ashes.

Paul exclaimed about it being Tuesday night. Tuesdays were always a favorite for us because the boardwalk always shot off fireworks on Tuesdays and Fridays. No matter where we were on those two nights, we'd always stop and watch the display. I liked the mesh of colors: once an artist, always an artist. Paul once told me he enjoyed the fireworks because it brought back a vague memory from his human childhood. He never went into detail about why they were so special, maybe he can't remember why. We all carry something from our mortal days, the elder's blood erases most of our memories, but the most powerful ones remain.

We took our place on the second story balcony. The chatter of humans filled my ears. It never surprised me how excited they got over something as simple as seeing the sky covered with colorful lights. Then I remembered the four of us were gathered there as well.

Heavy metal blared from the boom boxes a few mortals brought with them. Those said mortals were dancing in the sand around the speakers, wasted out of their minds. It didn't take much to make me laugh, but seeing humans in their folly always provided me with entertainment. We might as well let them have their fun, after all it's only a matter of time before death claims them. If they happen to provide us with a few laughs, then it's a win for both. There have only been three humans I've ever respected and they're all dead.

Paul nudged me in the side. I glared up at him to see him greeting me with that large smile he never went anywhere without. Even when facing those who wanted him dead he always wore that smile. The only time I've ever seen him without was when that cop shot Douglas, and when that slayer tried to kill us, and that time David tried to hit me before I ran away. He's always been protective of me, so have the other two, but Paul was willing to slaughter anyone who dared to hurt me. It's just another reason to be glad he's my brother.

"Air guitar!" Paul shouted to the sky as he began that motion.

He was getting really into the guitar solo. I could not contain my laughter, along with a few of the nearby humans. Dwayne watched with a smile and a few chuckles. David puffed away on that cigarette that was never far from his reach. He rolled his eyes at us, but I could see we amused him. Tuesday nights were always the best.

The crowd suddenly grew silent and my stomach bounced. The first stream of light exploded into an array of green. My eyes lit up as a second one in blue erupted beside the first. Every few seconds a new explosion of lights replaced the dying ones withering away to the salty grave below. It was too beautiful and familiar a sight.

I always looked forward to the blue ones. Even though I'm in love with deep red hues for obvious reasons, my favorite color has always been and always will be blue. A cerulean one filled the sky which held my attention to well. It was the perfect time for my attackers to make their move and they took that opportunity.

Before I had a chance to register what happened, a hand clamped over my mouth and I found myself plummeting to the sand below. My back hit the ground and I lifted my head and legs in reaction to the sudden shock and pain. I groaned then looked up wondering how I lost my balance. I saw the cold eyes of the mortal standing above me. I've seen that look before, and each time it was right before a human tried to end my life.

There were two of them. They both seemed fond of black leather, were they not a threat to our existence perhaps David would be interested in their attire. One of them appeared to be just under thirty and the other had at least five years and four inches on his partner. (David explained to me, after my return to Santa Carla two years ago, that as a vampire gains more years he gains the ability to tell a human's age based on the scent of blood—since I haven't learned that yet, I still have to guess based on faces.) The younger wore his hair in spikes, but to me he looked like a pathetic rip-off of a punk rocker. The other one had long, messy hair. They both had that same glare of pure hatred in their eyes. Now that I knew their attack was intentional, I was sure they knew what I was, I only didn't know was how they found out.

I sat up, but the older one kicked me in the chin. The force of his boot knocked me down on my arm. My head collided with a small, yet inconveniently sharp rock. My eyes accidentally flashed yellow giving them all the proof they needed that they made no mistake. I leapt up only to see the younger one charge at me. He kicked me in the stomach then showed the fearsome wooden weapon clenched tightly in his hand. My heart raced. I tried to move, but my right arm didn't want to cooperate.

My sore limb ached worse when the older of the slayers forced both of my arms behind my back. He inserted his knee into my back which forced my chest forward while the other readied to strike with the stake.

Without thinking I called for David's help. I immediately realized my mistake. Any of the mortals on the beach could see us. It would go against Max's orders for David to rescue me.

"What do you want with me?" I growled as I struggled in my captor's hold.

"Don't play dumb with us," the one with the stake replied. "We both saw you and the others feeding along the dirt road an hour ago."

"Yes," the one who had a hold on me hissed in my ear. "We saw how horrible your kind our. We've trained for years and were finally sent to deal with Santa Carla's vampire problem."

By the tone in their voices I could tell these were not any ordinary amateur slayers. No, these guys were the real deal. I struggled in the assassin's hold and aimed to kick him in the shin. He predicted my action and moved his leg in time. The one who held the stake slapped me hard with the back of his hand which caused me to yelp. The sound echoed in synchrony with the red firework overhead. It seemed ironic that these two were just as brutal as us.

Just as the one who slapped me lowered the stake we all were distracted with the figure in black landing beside us. David kicked up sand in the eyes of the one who held the weapon. He dropped the stake as his hands went to cleanse his eyes from the stinging grains. I never saw what happened to the one who held me only that he released his hold on me. I fell forward, landing on my hands. I looked up in time to see Dwayne grab the younger slayer by his hair. He tossed that imbecile against the balcony. A chorus of screams echoed above us.

Great, just what we needed, a bunch of startled cattle parading about. My heart skipped as the possibility of one of them seeing us crossed my mind.

My thoughts were cut short when I found myself being propped up by my closest brother. He examined my sore arm. I was sure that it wasn't broken, only severely sprained or bruised. Were it any normal night I would not worry for it would heal by the next evening, however this time we had some company to entertain.

When I looked up I saw that our opponent's team had grown to five. The leader of the group (the one who had held me while his teammate tried to stake me) and David were in a deep conversation. Whatever David suggested the lead human agreed to.

Paul helped me to my feet. Once I was steady David nodded for us to follow. The four of us along with the slayers moved away from the populated area of the beach. A few moments later we stood in an isolated area away from prying eyes. David always knew what to do in any situation.

David spoke with the leader once again. Why did they feel the need to talk? I was ready to break some noses and ribs for what they tried to do to me. I wondered if any of them were as strong as Dale, if so then we had a reason to worry. The four of us barely defeated him last time.

I took that time to examine my opponents. Other than the first two there was one guy who was twice as big as Dale. His scar was scarier than Dale's too, a shape that I couldn't pull my eyes away from. I suddenly got the urge to add an identical one on the other side of his face. There was another guy in the back who seemed timid. He looked like a wannabe me, only skinnier and without a backbone. I wondered who invited him along on their little adventure. He probably drew the short straw. Beside and in front of him was a girl. I had never heard of a female slayer before. She was kind of plain, but had pretty red hair. That scar on her face made her look pretty hot. I kind of didn't want to kill her. I thought about turning her into my Tuesday night lover before I ended her life.

The eyes of the bulky slayer fell on me. So he was to be my first opponent. That would be interesting. I was hoping to hold the girl close to me for a few seconds, but I also wanted a good challenge.

"My name is Jay," he said in a serious tone. I merely smiled at his introduction. He refused to smile back at me. In that same serious voice he said, "I wanted you to know the name of the person who will end your existence."

I laughed with my hand in front of my mouth. I lowered my hand to my side then said, "A lot of confidence for a lower species."

He glared at me for a few seconds before he charged towards me. I stepped out of the way of the first punch. The wind from the force of his fist whipped in my face. I don't doubt that it would've hurt. He slowed in a skid then without stopping turned around, his feet tossing up sand. He sent another punch my way. I avoided it, but never saw the second one coming from the other side. His massive fist collided with my rib. I began to fall, but kept from falling, landing in a kneeling position. He landed another punch for my face which I quickly evaded. I landed behind him and kicked him in the back of the head. He fell face forward in the sand. I couldn't contain my laughter.

He growled then stood, ignoring the remaining sand in his eyes. That was one tough human, I had to give him that. He reached his hand into his back pocket while his eyes remained fixed on me. He had to be reaching for a weapon. I bit my bottom lip. After all that time I would have to eliminate him and it had been so much fun.

Jay had two silver knives in his hands. Someone should've told him we're not werewolves. However, maybe his plan was to slow me down with stab wounds. He ran towards me with the blades gripped tightly in his fists. He swung, barely missing my face. The second ripped my jacket. I glared at him, that was the jacket I made myself. His blood would pay for that.

He started a second assault on me. I ducked in time to miss the blade then kicked him hard in the stomach. He stumbled back, but did not fall. However, his arms did wave and I took advantage of the opening and kicked him straight in the throat. The blade of one of the knives dug into the sand as he gripped the injured area.

It was the perfect time. I leapt into the air and landed behind him. Jay turned in time to punch me away with the side of his fist before I could sink my fangs into the back of his neck. I rubbed my aching jaw while my glowing eyes glared daggers at him. He picked up the fallen blade and stood about the same time I did.

Just as we were about to go another round I heard a yell from a few feet over. My eyes widened and I became numb at the sight of Paul falling to the ground. It turned out that useless creature was not as useless as I originally believed. He stood with the crossbow aimed at Paul. Two arrows already wounded him: one in the arm and the other in the leg.

I abandoned my fight with Jay and dashed over to where Paul lay helpless. That spiked freak hovered over Paul with a stake ready to end him. I wanted to eliminate that wuss with the crossbow, but he would have to wait.

While rushing to the scene I wondered how come Paul had yet to wake up. My heart dropped with the thought that he could possibly already be dead. No, I had to keep those thoughts away. If we wanted to survive this battle we had to keep focused. That was something David taught me during our battle training (yes, Max felt it was important that we trained so that we knew what to do in case we ever encountered a vampire slayer), never let an opponent's thoughts be more victorious than our own.

I kicked that creep right in the stomach. I then spun and kicked him in the mouth. A few droplets of blood splattered in the yellow sand. I held back too much, it would've been more satisfying to see that arrogant jaw broken. Still, the party was not over yet. For what he did to Paul I intended to cause him as much pain as possible and enjoy every second of it.

I dropped down and kicked him in the kneecap. I laughed, but it was cut short when I realized he turned his body so that he could take me down with him. In his hand he revealed the stake that was intended for Paul. That stake reeked of holy water. That was how they managed to knock Paul out.

Spiky landed on top of me hard. His elbow rammed in the side of my abdomen. I squirmed beneath him as he struggled to aim the stake for my chest. I grabbed his wrist and pushed him away while he strained to push forward. I found an opening and managed to swing my legs around enough to push him off of me. The tip of the stake scraped my cheek. I hissed as the liquid burned my skin. He landed with a thud as I scrambled to lift myself from the ground.

My eyes surveyed the area. David and Dwayne had collectively managed to eliminate the girl and the wimp with the crossbow. Dwayne was currently fighting Jay. I winced at the amount of gashes on his arms. If those blades were laced with holy water too it was only a matter of time before he shared Paul's fate.

At the thought of Paul I dropped to his side. It was going to be dreadfully painful for him to remove those stakes. Unlike humans it won't be lethal to remove imbedded objects, but the pain will be the same.

Before I had a chance to help my brother that spiked bastard returned. He tackled me. We rolled in the sand before I kicked him off. He toppled over a few feet, the stake still in hand. We both scrambled up and ran towards each other. He swung his stake at me which I easily avoided. I smirked, this one seemed to err when he's frustrated. I figured I could use that against him.

I heard a few yells from behind me. It sounded like David had the upper hand which gave met the cue to keep fighting. He moved to kick me in the hip which I moved in time to avoid the brunt of the attack. There would be a bruise there later. I kicked his feet out from underneath him. Stepping back, I stumbled.

I suddenly felt a wave of dizziness. I gripped my head and wavered. I heard the sound of speeding footsteps behind me. I spun around to see the lead slayer, the one David had been fighting, mere feet away from me with a stake in hand. I gasped and shielded myself with my arm as the stake nicked my jacket.

I felt two arms grab me and was lifted into the air. My savior kicked the lead assassin in the sand. He landed at an unnatural angle, hopefully breaking something. David landed a good ways away from the slayer and placed me on the ground. I thanked my brother then was hit with another dizzy spell. It had to be the holy water that was making its way to my heart. We needed medicine and fast.

That was when I noticed Paul slumped in Dwayne's arms. I spoke his name while looking at the pained expression on his unconscious face.

The slayers were regrouping a few yards away. It was apparent that with David being the only one who was not harmed by the weapons that we could not defeat them on their own. I looked up at David hoping he had a plan. David always had a plan.

"We have to get out of here now," David said.

Retreat? That was his plan? I looked down at my feet. It had to be tough for David to admit that as his final decision. He was correct, there was no way we could take them on in our current state. We needed rest. But where could we go? We could not go to the cave, it wouldn't take them long to track us down.

"Will you be able to move on your own?" David asked Dwayne.

For the first time I noticed how horrible Dwayne looked. He looked sort of green and his eyes were lined with blue and appeared glazed. It was not natural for a vampire to look like a ghoul.

"I can't run, but it won't hurt me to fly," he answered. It was just like Dwayne to deny his own sufferings for the good of the group.

"We can't take them on by ourselves," David said.

I don't know if he was trying to explain his supposed failure. None of us blamed him for what happened. If anyone should be blamed it's me for not noticing them sooner. If I would've been able to fight them off when the first two attacked then my brothers wouldn't have been hurt this bad. Everytime something bad happens it's always my fault. I don't understand why David continues to tolerate me. They've already done enough for me and they'll continue to sacrifice until the day we finally meet our match.

David spoke to me which pulled me out of my thoughts. "Marco, carry Dwayne," he ordered. I nodded in agreement. David quickly turned to Dwayne and said, "Dwayne, do not argue."

I kept myself from smiling at that comment. Despite Dwayne's efforts, he could not hide the extent of his injuries from David.

David turned to me once again. He quietly said, "We need to get to Max's store. If anyone can help it's him."

My eyes widened at his statement. He wanted us to go to Max about this. I understood that it was crucial for Max to know about the slayers that tried to attack his family, but I didn't think it was such a good idea for us to lead them there. The main reason Max didn't want us to go to his store was so that no one knew our relation to him. Still the look in David's eyes told me his decision was not up for debate.

I slung Dwayne over my shoulder. It was kind of awkward since he was so much taller than me and not entirely unconscious. I could feel him losing strength the further we ran. David had yet to ask me how I was feeling and even if he did I wouldn't tell him the truth. He doesn't need someone else to worry about right now.

We reached a secluded area in which humans rarely ventured. Seeking to see if there were any mortals other than the slayers coming up fast on their bikes, we took to the sky. Our flight was much slower than normal with the extra weight. We had to take the longer route so as not to be spotted. Also I figured David might've been misleading the slayers.

We landed at the back entrance to the video store. Dwayne had passed out sometime between our travel from the beach to the shop. David beckoned for us to hide in the stiffs in the bushes. I covered Paul and Dwayne in leaves. It hurt me to see Paul in such a helpless manner.

"I'm going to ask you to protect them," David said, looking me square in the eyes. I nodded in agreement. He didn't even need to ask me.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" I asked.

David turned to face me. The nervousness was present on his face. Having to face Max was scarier than confronting a thousand slayers.

He gave me a comforting smile then said, "Keep them safe." It was not an answer to my question, but I wasn't really expecting one. David felt he had to always seem strong and collected for our sakes. He was a true leader. David added, "Try not to make any noise. If the slayers find you, do your best against them."

He had a lot of faith in me, much more than I had in myself. I was not the one who was able to take on various slayers at a time. He was the one who figured out how to take down the slayer who attacked me my first month. (4) He was the one who came up with the plan to best Dale. And now he wanted me to be the one to take over that role.

"I know you're a great fighter," he said with a smirk. After those words he left the area. He took the long way around just in case our opponents were lurking nearby.

I felt my mouth form a smile. I knew what he was referring to. It was impossible for me to take pride in that compliment. According to Paul I was one of the few who ever had a chance against David. That alone inflated my ego, but to hear those words from David meant so much more.

I stood with my fists pumped, ready to take down anyone who dared to hurt our family. I was then hit with another dizzy spell. I shut my eyes tightly with my fingers on both of my temples. Of all the times to feel weak, being on the lookout for three people who wanted to end my life was not one of the best. I knew it was a side effect of the holy water, but at the moment I could not let those thoughts penetrate my mind. I had to stand firm. My brothers depended on me.

I waited for what felt like an hour. I knew it was not really that long, but when you're anxious you feel that it's longer than it really is. I hoped that Max knew what to do in this situation. David told me that on his best day he didn't even come close to two percent of what Max could do. That's the main reason we're careful never to cross the line with him. It's good that David knew where that fine line was.

I kept an ear out for anything that sounded suspicious. My eyes threatened to shut again. I held my spinning head and took a few deep breaths. It usually worked for humans. Of course it's like we boasted many times, we're nothing like humans.

The sound of motorcycles shutting off combined with hurried voices caught my attention. I fought off the weakness and stood strong in case any of them checked behind the store.

"That boy said he saw him running into this store," that familiar voice called. I watched through the safety of my hiding spot. The leader and Spiky brisk walked into the entrance of the store. I suppose we'll be dealing with that snitch later.

I didn't have time to warn David as I felt someone standing to the back right of me. I spun around to see Jay standing there with his precious knives in hand. He smirked at me. I stepped out, ready to defend my brothers to the death.

"I told you I'd end you here tonight," Jay coldly said. He then moved into place. The knives glistened in the moonlight. Were they not meant for my insides I might have found them beautiful.

I moved into a fighting stance. He launched at me, the blades tightly secured in his fists. He waited until he crossed my side before diving in for the slice. I anticipated the move and ducked out of the way, spinning him about. Jay sliced the left cuff of my jacket before stepping three paces away. We both stared at each other for a moment until I moved.

I grabbed him by the throat the same time he grasped my wrist. I yanked my wrist free and kicked him in the thigh. I flipped off of him then used the brick wall to push off back towards him. As I spin kicked he grabbed my leg and twisted it until we both heard a crack. He then threw me headfirst against the wall. I cried at the sudden pain. Gripping my already spinning head I opened my eyes just to see him stab me with one of his knives.

He forced the blade deep into my chest and ripped further down. The silver blood covered his knife. I'm sure that's a token of victory for them. I leaned my head against the wall. He smirked. I gave him a few moments more to enjoy his supposed win. He placed his massive palm on my chest and yanked the weapon from where it impaled. I bit back a yelp. My hand covered the bloody spot.

The good news was that he didn't have a chance to dip it in holy water since our last fight. The bad news was that I didn't know how far from my heart he stabbed. I assumed it was not a direct hit since I was still alive.

Jay stepped forward with the second knife in hand. There was only one chance left for me, it was not an honorable move and I was not too proud of it, but my brothers' lives depended on it. I shut my eyes and inhaled sharply, pretending I was too injured to move. Just as he plunged the second knife for me I ducked then head butted him in the nose. He yelled and clamped his free hand over his bleeding nose. It smelt so good and I had to force back my fangs.

I ripped the knife from my chest and tossed it into one of the nearby bushes. He glanced up in time to see me kick him in the stomach. He leaned forward and I saw an opening. I took it. I dashed behind him and grabbed the sides of his head. In one swift motion he fell to the ground with a loud thud. The blood leaked from his nose, but from where I stood it looked like a simple accident.

I picked up the knife from his clenched hand and stuffed it in my pocket. I would treasure that token of my victory until the day a real slayer takes my life. The body was thrown over my shoulder because I knew David and Max would want Jay's remains far from the store. While looking at his cold, dead face I couldn't contain my laughter. He was so confident that he would end me and when it came down to it, it was me who ended him.

I heard a sound behind me and spun around ready to attack the next assailant. I sighed in relief to see it was only David. He had an amused look on his face which led me to wonder how much of my fight he saw. He must have had some faith in me not to intervene. Looking back on that night I realized that it was quite a struggle, but it was one that I alone could take pride in.

"I thought you were the others," I said as I balanced the literal dead weight on my shoulders.

David smirked. He always finds humor in the gravest things. I don't really know much about his past, but Dwayne told me that's how he's always dealt with dark topics.

"Don't worry about them, they'll meet their end at Max's hands," David said at last.

I suddenly remembered David telling me that he was a mere nothing compared to Max's power. If what David said is true then we had nothing to fear.

"Is he really that powerful?" I asked, seriously wanting to know.

As always David didn't answer my question. I think he enjoys keeping me in the dark. Or maybe he wants me to find these things out for myself. Or maybe, it's a small maybe, it's too scary for him to think of just how powerful Max is.

David glanced over to where we stashed Paul and Dwayne. That serious look returned to his eyes. "Come on, we have to get the two of them to Max's house," he said.

"I thought we weren't allowed there," I cried. From day one Max made it clear that we weren't allowed to go anywhere near his property without first being summoned. David made sure we never broke that rule. I heard once from Dwayne that David used to live in that house for the first four decades of his life. I wanted to know what happened to change that, but I didn't want to bring up any bad memories for David so chose to just let my curiosity die on that one.

"This is an emergency," David said. His voice took on a more cheery tone. "Besides Max has an elixir that will cure Dwayne of the poison if my hunches are correct." So David knew all along about the holy water, it didn't surprise me. If David was a human he would make a good detective.

I remembered Jay. It felt awkward holding a dead person over my shoulder when anyone could walk behind this store and see us. Of course David could easily deal with that foolish mortal, but still. "What do I do with him?" I asked nodding to Jay.

"You broke his neck and didn't penetrate the flesh, correct?" David asked. I nodded. He moved closer to me as if he wanted to inspect. I don't know why he wouldn't think I was telling the truth. He suddenly stopped as if to think. "Drop him from the top story of a building." David always knew what to do. "It will look like an accident," he said as an afterthought.

At that point I smiled. I glanced over at Jay's corpse with a smirk. After all that bragging he failed and his death would not be heroic. No, he would be classified as a mere accident, maybe even a suicide.

I took off with his body. I made sure to fly out to the business district before choosing one of the taller skyscrapers. It was not a windy night which cut out the dramatics. The blood continued to leak from his nostrils; that was no big deal as it would be considered another casualty of the fall. I was interested in finding out what _Santa Carla News_ (5) had to say about this poor nameless fool's death in tomorrow's paper. That edition would be a must-have to join the many other articles of our more significant victims I kept in my notebook.

I grabbed Jay's corpse by the neck and dangled him over the edge of the skyscraper. "Good night, Jay," I laughed just before letting go. Gravity took it from there. The crack echoed through the sounds of vehicles passing. I heard several screams from below. Using the night as a shield I hurried off before someone caught a figure peering over the side of the building.

About two minutes later I met up with David. He smirked at me, telling me he heard the outcome of my task. There wasn't time for talk, Paul and Dwayne needed that potion quick.

We hurried over to our motorcycles. I positioned Paul in front of me. He stirred and murmured something, briefly opening his eyes. David darted out of his parking spot giving me the cue to follow. It was a short ride to Max's house.

By the time we arrived Paul and Dwayne had regained consciousness. I offered to carry Paul inside, but he was too damn independent. He hobbled inside in front of me. Dwayne walked beside me. He still looked pretty bad, but hopefully the medicine would help that. I felt the effect of the water taking over me again, but fought it off. The last thing I wanted was to worry David any more. Our leader shut the gate then walked behind us. He unlocked the door to be greeted by that obnoxious dog. David scared him away before settling Dwayne down on the furniture.

I placed Paul on the floor. I hobbled over to help David when I fell victim to another dizzy spell. I gripped the doorframe hoping he never caught my fading strength or the fact that my leg was giving me trouble. Jay hurt me worse that I thought, a fact I'm sure he's still laughing about up in Heaven. I glanced over where David stood a few moments ago to see him missing. He probably hurried off to find the medicine.

Paul groaned and I limped over to him.

"Hey, Paul," I said sitting down beside him ignoring the pain in my leg and chest. Paul looked up at me and smiled. "How're you doing?" I asked.

He laughed. "I feel like I've been impaled with stakes," he said. He turned his face so that his cheek met with the floor. "I feel so horrible." He looked up at me then said, "But I'll get better, don't worry 'bout me."

I removed my jacket and threw it sloppily on the floor. Paul sat up, wincing at the sudden pain in his arm. He bit down on his lip before staring at the blood on my shirt.

"What the Hell happened to you?" he gasped.

He reached out to touch the wound and I moved away in reflex. The wound already started healing. I was more worried about the cut on my face that had already started festering. I hoped that the medicine David went to fetch would heal it. I didn't show, but it hurt.

"David doesn't know," I said to Paul. "Please, I'd like to keep it that way."

The look on his face showed me he didn't like my choice. But it was my decision and he was kind enough to agree. He curled into himself and shut his eyes.

David's boots echoed making me look over at him. He tossed me a bottle of blood. I popped off the cap and nearly downed it in one breath. I didn't really like chilled blood, but it was better than nothing.

"What's that?" I asked David while putting the bottle down on the table. David held a small bottle of some pinkish clear liquid.

"Medicine," David answered. He put Dwayne's head in his lap and fed him the medicine. He spoke to Dwayne, but I didn't really care what they talked about. David stood up and folded Dwayne's hands over his body. There would be no trouble sleeping in Max's house since it was built to protect our kind from sunlight.

David moved next to me and opened Paul's mouth. In the span of three minutes that buffoon fell asleep. David was able to administer the drug without waking him.

"You should have some too," David said handing me the remaining medicine.

I stared at him for a few seconds. I shouldn't have been surprised that he found out that I was also injured by one of those poisoned stakes. I took the bottle and downed it. It didn't have much of a taste, but was much thicker than I expected.

"It's been a long day, so you should probably get some rest," David said. He handed a blanket to me then moved Paul to the other couch and covered him with a blanket. He placed another blanket on Dwayne before returning to the floor. I looked down at my feet hoping to be as good a brother as David someday.

I rested my head against my arms. I thought of Jay and the other four reasons for this change in plans. It was different sleeping in a house again.

"Do you think we'll ever see them again?" I asked David without looking at him. I heard his tales of how strong Max is, but I hoped that they were true. If they killed Max it would only be a matter of time before they found us and killed us in our sleep.

"No," David said easing my fears. "Max got rid of them."

I smiled. "We owe him a lot," I said looking over at David. He seemed to be in deep thought. I didn't want to disturb him further and returned to my original position. "Good morning, David," I said just to be polite.

I never heard his response. I closed my eyes and begged for sleep to come. That medicine must've put us to sleep because I never heard Max come home. When we woke the next night, fully restored, I knew he had taken care of the slayers. Santa Carla was safe for us once more.

* * *

There you have it, everybody! The final chapter of The Incident!

I hope no one was really disappointed that this chapter wasn't in Paul's POV, but it would've been a really unsatisfying end to the story since he was unconscious throughout half of it.

I hope you all enjoyed!

Notes:

1) This is referring to my story _Runaway_. I decided to spare the vicious details of that battle since I go into depth in the previous story and didn't want to make it too repetitive for those who have already read _Runaway_.

2) This is a slight reference to the plot of my story _Typical Victims_. That story is not a part of the Santa Carla Chronicles, as it is meant to be a side story to the movie. Since I went into depth of David's hunting style in that story, I decided just to summarize so as not to be too repetitive.

3) This is a reference to the last chapter in my story _Runaway_ where David chose to ignore the death rule of their battle contract by letting Marco live.

4) This is referring to a chapter in my story _Runaway_ where Marco has a flashback of how David saved him from a slayer when he was only a month old (according to vampire age) then harshly scolded Marco afterwards for being so careless.

5) This is the name of the newspaper in my story _Curtis_.


End file.
